i K n i t 2 P u r l 2

Mittens for Me! Me! Me!

2012-01-22T12:04:00.000-05:00

Well, the weather in Atlanta doesn't really justify knitting mittens right now but it is still January which means it's time for the NaKniMitMo Knitalong. I decided to knit Wood Hollow Mittens by Kirsten Kapur. I'm using Aslan Trends Royal Alpaca Yarn in this pretty magenta color.

This little guy is hanging out with me while I knit:

Isn't that the cutest stitchmarker ever? I found a set in Lavender Hill Knits' Etsy Shop. Lots of cute stitchmarker sets are available there!

The pattern is fairly easy ... an eight row pattern repeat with cables ... There was a twisted stitch that was described to be knit without the help of a cable needle but I found it easier to use a cable needle. I made a slight modification at the top to adjust the length without finishing another 8 row repeat. Overall, an enjoyable and quick knit. I'm hoping to cast on the second one this afternoon while at my daughter's dance rehearsals.

The Colors of the Year 2012

2012-01-16T10:59:00.002-05:00

I've only recently become aware that Pantone, a renowned authority on color, announces its annual color of the year in the early fall. Just recently announced, the 2012 color of the year, Tangerine Tango, is a truly bright and vibrant shade of orange, ready to re-energize you.

Pantone's 2012 Color of the Year!

And, then, last week, I read that Benjamin Moore, my favorite maker of paint, announced its 2012 Color of the Year, Wythe Blue, a soothing medium blue. It's grouped in Benjamin Moore's Earth & Sky Color Trends to assist you in creating a perfect relaxing color palette!

Benjmain Moore's Earth & Sky Color Trend Includes Wythe Blue

Of course, it's easy to find ways to use both of the colors around your home. Throw pillows are a great (and affordable) way to give your home a color boost!

Another fun way to add the 2012 Color of the Year to your life would be to include it in your landscaping plans this spring...I'm thinking a little Tangerine Tango in the garden:

What about knitting with these beautiful colors of the year? I found a few skeins in my stash which are close.

Since I'm trying to use yarn that I already own instead of rushing out to buy new yarn, I'll stick with these shades when trying out the 2012 colors. Show here: MadelineTosh Merino Light in Magnolia Leaf, MadelineTosh Vintage in Saffron, Pagewood Farm in Mississippi Mud, The Loopy Ewe Solid Series in Serenity Green, Madeline Tosh Sock in Mica and Royal Alpaca in #708.

So, what do you think of the 2012 Colors of the Year?!!

You Know What This Means, Right?

2012-01-07T08:51:00.000-05:00

I finished the first of the Hermione Everyday Socks:

What a nice pattern! A 4 row 4 stitch pattern that is super simple to memorize! Every other row is all knit!

The yarn is terrific too! It's Pagewood Farm Alyeska in Cherry Blossom which is incredibly soft with a 80% Merino Wool, 10% Cashmere 10% Nylon Blend. Perfect for nice soft socks!

I'm hoping to have some time today to really make progress on the second sock. What are you knitting today?

Happy New Year!!

2012-01-01T07:54:00.000-05:00

Wishing everyone the best for 2012!

New Year's Resolutions!!

2011-12-30T10:16:00.003-05:00

I just read my knitty galpal's blog, Susie, aka KnittingKnoobie, about New Year's Resolutions and, boy, do we have a LOT in common!

I had two projects on my list a year ago...I only half finished my Norwegian Selbu Mittens. They always seemed to small but I found out that I love colorwork! .I've pulled theses mittens out to work on over the holiday break but alas! that was as fas it went. I also have a very minimally completed Beatnik sweater...did I not like the yarn or is it too warm in Atlanta? So...with these projects still in the works, I am going to make a few knitty resolutions of my own for 2012.

First, I am really going to try to stashbust!I have enough yarn to last me for a while so I certainly don't need to buy too much yarn this year! When we get home, I'm going to design a counter of some sort...naughty vs. nice so to speak. I'll put in on the sidebar of my blog... something like, I delved into my stash (nice) - yarn browsing got the better of me (naughty)! :)

Next, I'm going to try to complete some lingering UFOs...those mittens, a sweater and a few pairs of socks are still on my needles.

I'd like to knit some more shawls and wraps this year. Sometimes, lace is difficult to knit because it requires so much attention and I revert to mindless (although enjoyable) knitting. Time to step it up a bit.

Lastly, I'd like to design some socks...and mittens...and shawls...and...well, you get the idea! Lots of ideas...not always lots of time!

What are your New Year's Resolutions? Share here!

Nutcracker Knitalong Update!

2011-12-18T15:16:00.003-05:00

The Nutcracker performances are over and I'm still knitting gifts!!! How's everyone fairing with their Holiday Gift Knitting? Mine is coming along although I might not finish everything quite on time...That's what the 12 days of Christmas are for, right?

I've finished a few Irish Hiking Beanies...might have to try a few more since they are a superfast knit and I need a few "boy presents". I've also got a stockpile of mittens and shawls in my knitting drawer to share with family members.

Right now, I am working on a Raha Scarf by Nancy Bush. The pattern is in Knitted Lace of Estonia by Nancy Bush which would make a lovely gift for any knitter on your gift list. This scarf is about 50% complete. I'm using The Sanguine Gryphon Skinny Bugga Yarn in Starry NightCracker.

Raha Scarf

I've also completed a few Noro Striped Scarves. What an easy knit! Here's one that I've completed. I love the way the colorways worked out. I used two different Noro Silk Garden colorways; one with primarily brown/gray tones and the other with pink/blue/green shades.

KCMomof2 shared her knitted Christmas Tree Skirt. Wow! I love this pattern and have added it to my queue:

Snowball Tree Skirt

So, what knitting gift projects have you completed? Share here!

Irish Hiking Beanie!

2011-12-12T08:51:00.000-05:00

Just in time for last minute, holiday gift knitting, the Irish Hiking Beanie is a quick and easy knit...in just a few hours and with less than one skein of yarn, you can have a hand knitted hat ready to wrap! The Irish Hiking Beanie is, of course, a companion to the Irish Hiking Mittens and the Irish Hiking Mitts, all which were inspired by Adrian Bazilia's Irish Hiking Scarf. The Irish Hiking Beanie pattern, which is available free on Ravelry includes written and charted instructions. Using worsted-weight yarn will keep someone toasty warm in no time at all!

Let's Celebrate!!!!

2011-12-05T12:56:00.000-05:00

Crimson Tide Socks - Free on Ravelry - Click Here!

By now, all of you must know that the University of Alabama's football team will be playing for the National Championship on January 9, 2012. I've been following Alabama football all season, mostly because of these socks that I designed. To celebrate, my Crimson Tide Sock Pattern is now available as a FREE download on Ravelry! I have to admit, as I decorate for the holidays, I might try to knit another pair before the holidays because they almost have a peppermint look to me!

And The Winners Are!

2011-11-26T14:57:00.001-05:00

I'm happy to announce the winners of my Yarn Giveaway! Drum Roll Please!
The First Place Winner (Wollmeise Yarn) is...

First Place Winner Number 17 Jessie!

Jessie said...

I liked you on facebook :)
dodington at gmail dot com
November 16, 2011 1:52 PM

and The Second Place Winner (Sanquine Gryphon Yarn) is:

Second Place Winner Number 76 Kristin!

Kristin said...
I just retweeted your tweet about the possible 2nd winner! Hope it happens !
November 20, 2011 12:09 PM

Congratulations Jessie and Kristin! Please email your names and mailing addresses to me at iknit2purl2@gmail.com so that I can send your beautiful yarn!

Thank you so much to everyone who participated in my yarn giveaway!

Nutcracker Knitalong

2011-11-25T10:50:00.000-05:00

I can hardly believe that it's that time of year again! The Nutcracker is upon us! As you all know, my 14 year old daughter takes a LOT of ballet and dance classes and is cast in her ballet company's annual Nutcracker performance. It's her 8th year performing and this year she is a Maid, Small Fairy, and is in Snow and Chinese. That's a LOT of rehearsals and performances! Sunday November 27th marks the beginning of the Eight Magical Days of the Nutcracker at our house. What's that, you wonder? Starting next Sunday, there are in-studio rehearsals and tech rehearsals and dress rehearsals at the theater all culminating in the performances on December 2, 3 and 4th. I can't wait to see my daughter as a Small Fairy..the little girls are first cast as angels and they dance with the Small Fairies and so it is very exciting to get to this, uh, pointe. And Snow...my favorite part of the Nutcracker! I. cannot...wait...until...the...performances! I'll be at all four! But first, lots and lots of hours at the theater and studio for rehearsals so I will have lots and lots of holiday knitting with me.

And that is what the Nutcracker Knitalong is all about! Just share here what you have been knitting for holiday gift giving. A little Nutty inspiration to share! Tweet me your pictures so I can add to blog updates. The Nutcracker Knitalong will run from Sunday November 27th through December 31st. Enough time to get started and, hopefully, enough time to finish!

So get cracking on all those knitty gifts! (sorry I loves me a bad pun!)

Are You Ready For Some Football?

2011-11-19T12:14:00.000-05:00

I am! With the weekend just starting, I went into my stash to find some yarn to knit another pair of Hedwig and Friends Socks. Think I'm going to try to see how the pattern works with a sport weight yarn and Size 3 needles.

I'm using KnitPicks Stroll Sport in Stream Heather. It's a nice denim-y blue, perfect for weekend socks. And, hopefully, a perfect fit for my husband. Think I will skip the beading on these socks though. Can't wait to get through with Saturday errands and chores so I can start these! Which football games will you be watching today?

Yarn Giveaway!

2011-11-16T09:13:00.005-05:00

Like all of you, I am planning some holiday gift knitting. As I was going through my stash, I realized my hubby was probably correct and I do, in fact, have much more yarn than I need. So...

Wollmeise Yarn 100% Merino Superwash in Kornblume

To celebrate my updated blog (have you seen my patterns page?) and my Facebook Page, I'm having a Yarn Give-Away.  Look at this great Wollmeise fingering weight yarn! It's 100% Merino Superwash in Kornblume (574 yards, 150 g), a vibrant blue with sublte variations, just perfect for socks or a shawl.

How do you get a chance to win?

• "Like" my Facebook Page. Come back and let me know that you have for an entry into the giveaway.

• You can also follow me on Twitter Come back and let me know that you have for an additional entry.

• F ollow my blog. Leave a comment here to let me know for an additional entry.

• Tweet about it!   Then leave a comment here.

               "I just entered to win iknit2purl2's yarn give-away at http://bit.ly/gVI9QT"

                 You may tweet about it as many times as you like and each tweet may be counted as a separate entry as long as you come back and leave the link to your tweet every time you tweet for additional entries.

•Blog about it! Write a blog post with a link to this giveaway in your blog post. Come back and leave 5 separate comments with your blog link in the first comment (ie Comment #1, Comment #2..) for FIVE additional entries!

Giveaway Details:

•Participants must be 18 yrs old or older to enter.

•Participants must live in the US or Canada to enter.

•(1) Winner will be selected by random number generator and will receive (1) skein of Wollmeise 100% Merion Superwash 574 yd in Kornblume

•Giveaway runs from 11/16/11 - 11/25/11, 11:59pm EST

•Participants must provide an email address to be contacted if he/she wins. Email addresses will not be used for solicitation purposes.

PLEASE leave each individual entry in a SEPARATE comment so that they all get counted by the random number generator. Your comments may not show up immediately as all comments are moderated.

I'll announce the winner on Saturday November 26th so that I can send out early the following week!

Good Luck! And Thank You for reading my blog!

Update on November 18th...If my Facebook Page gets at least 30 likes on it by Monday November 21 9am, , I will add a Second Prize (for a second winner), this delicious skein of The Sanguine Gryphon Eidos fingering weight yarn to the Give-Away.    The Colorway is Scylla, a deep blue with touches of green. At 420 yards, this 100% superwash merino wool yarn is more than enough for an average size pair of socks or shawlette.

The Sanguine Gryphon Eidos Yarn in Scylla!!!

Thank you for joining in the Give-Away Fun!

Hedwig & Friends

2011-11-11T17:46:00.000-05:00

Hedwig and Friends is a new sock pattern now available free on Ravelry! Just a few rows of cables create this fun pattern. The rest is knit and purl stitches. Plus, a few beads for some added cute-ness! And, best of all, just in time to sit down and knit while watching Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part II on DVD!

The yarn above is Tern in Back Bay by Quince and Company. At 221 yards per skein, two skeins are more than enough to make a pair of women's size medium socks. Tern is a dream to work with, 75% wool and 25% silk. A great fingering weight yarn, hand wash, lay flat to dry.

My prototype sock was knit with KnitPicks Stroll Fingering in Jack Rabbit Heather. To say I love this yarn and this colorway is a huge understatement! It's wonderful! 75% Merino Wool and 25% Nylon, this Fingering Weight Yarn is machine wash and tumble dry low. At 231 yards, 2 skeins,again, was more than enough to knit a pair of women's size medium socks.

A Princess of Yarnia

2011-10-31T19:24:00.000-04:00

My Halloween costume this year really reflects my knitty alterego....a sparkly tiara for a Princess of Yarnia. You know what I mean...one of the many who love to knit and love yarn, all yarn! Here's a sampling...

Red Heart yarn for Special Olympics Scarves 2012 project. Great project that I have done with my daughter the past two years...can't wait to start this year in blue & red!

Pretty Lorna's Laces yarn....perfect for socks and shawls.

Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock....great colorways for awesome socks!

Sanguine Gryphon...more great colorways for socks and shawls. And the reason for the missing tiara in the last two pictures?? I'm wearing it, of course! Princess Yarnia is off to fill the trick or treaters' bags full of candy!

Happy Halloween!

Footsie!

2011-10-26T13:08:00.000-04:00

So, you’re getting ready to knit some socks for holiday gift giving and all you know is that your niece wears a women’s size 6 shoe and your brother wears a men’s size 10? How long should the foot of the sock be? I’ve been known to trace my kids feet so I know how long to make their socks but what if your sweet niece lives in Connecticut and you live in Atlanta? Such has been my dilemma. But not anymore. I found these great Shoe Size Conversion Charts at ehow.com These charts will assist you in determining approximate length of feet in inches if you know someone’s shoe size. I’m sure they are going to help me knit perfect fitting socks this year!!! If not, I always can add a note to put those all wool socks in the dryer for a while if they are a smidge too big or explain how to block them a bit if they’re running a little small!!

A New Pattern to Celebrate Socktober!!!

2011-10-12T16:13:00.001-04:00

Effervescence Socks by iknit2purl2 on Ravelry

To celebrate Socktober, I designed a sock pattern to share with all of you! Effervescence is now available as a free download on Ravelry. It's an easy knit, using the mock cable stitch. By utilizing yarnovers and slipped stitches, you create a pretty cable pattern over a 2x2 rib. This sock pattern alternates the mock cable stitch between the ribs which creates a bubbly, effervescent look over the sock. And did I mention it's easy? An 8 stitch pattern over 4 rows creates this fun look!

The yarn above is The Sanguine Gryphon Skinny Bugga in Miss Spider. At 450 yards, one skein of this fingering weight sock yarn is more than enough to make a pair of Woman's socks in size Medium. For the pair below, I used Blue Moon Fiber Arts Lightweight Socks That Rock yarn in Turquoise. Again, one skein (360 yards) was more than enough for a pair of Woman's Size Medium socks.

FO - Hemlock Ring Blanket (and a Knitting Pictorial!)

2011-10-04T12:38:00.000-04:00

Hemlock Ring Blanket - Pattern adapted by Jared Flood

I just finished blocking my first-ever, Hemlock Ring Blanket. I have to tell you, once I started knitting it, I couldn't put it down. Really, it was much, much easier than anything I ever imagined! Nothing more complicated than yarnovers, SSKs, K2togs and PSSOs.

Fan and Leaf Pattern Detail

I used about 1 1/2 skeins of Cascade Yarns Ecological Wool in Antique. This yarn comes in big, generous 478 yard skeins and is reasonably priced at about $20 skein. I should have bought 3 skeins so I could make two! I used size 10 needles because that is all I had (size 10 1/2 is recommended). As you all know by now, I knit loosely and, even with the smaller needles, my finished blanket blocked to about 60 inches through Row 55 of the chart.

The pattern is great and easy to follow. I'd recommend stitch markers to keep track of the repeats. (There are only eight). I can't wait to start another. And another!

Crochet Bind-off

I was so excited to finish the Hemlock Ring Blanket that I chose to do the crochet bind-off instead of the knited one. It's much easier, I think, once you get the hang of it and, I think, a lot of the completed projects that I have seen on Ravelry used the crochet bind-off. I had never used this technique before and, while I was able to find knitting videos online for a plain crochet bind-off, I couldn't find a video showing how to crochet through 3 stitches, then chain 7. I fiddled with it a bit and this is what I came up with:

Chain 7 out of the last stitch ( I knitted through Row 55 and had 472 stitches, starting here leaves 471 stitches which is divisible by 3 and prevents any leftover stitches at the end).

Chain 7 stitches

Slip 3 stitches off of the knitting needle onto to the crochet hook. (At this point, there will be 4 stitches total on crochet hook)

Slip 3 stitches to crochet hook

Pull yarn though the 3 stitches (2 stitches left on crochet hook)

Pull Yarn through 3 stitches

Pull yarn through remaining 2 stitches

Pull yarn through 2 stitches

Repeat starting from Chain 7.

As far as blocking goes, you need a LOT of pins. I pinned each loop from the bind-off. If you did the math above, that's 157 loops! Plus the points of the flowers and the inner loops and, and, and! I used my bathroom floor and my Alphabet Blocks when my husband was on away on a business trip. And, I kept the door shut to keep the cats and dog out. Too many pins to worry about!

Hemlock Ring Blanket - Blocking- That's a lotta pins!

I'm going to give this to my mother-in-law for Christmas. I think I will knit at least one more as a Christmas gift and then, hopefully, one for me as well!

Socktoberfest - Right Around the Corner

2011-09-28T12:52:00.001-04:00

One of my knitty pals, Susie, aka Knitting Knoobie, just reminded me that it's almost time for Socktoberfest, a month long festival of knitting which you can find on Ravelry. I've been looking for some patterns on Ravelry (and I've been looking at Susie's project page on Ravelry because she finds great sock patterns!!). Here's some patterns that I'd like to knit.

Diagonal Lace Socks by Wendy D. Johnson

Hermione's Everyday Socks by Erica Leuder

D-Man Socks By Karen Lauger

Now to go through my stash and select some yarn to use! What sock patterns have you run across recently that you are planning on knitting soon? Share with us here!

Block Party!

2011-09-26T12:24:00.000-04:00

I think most knitters would agree, a knitter's idea of a block party is significantly different than what most people would think...I finally blocked some finished knitting projects. I had so much to block that my small set of Knitpicks foam blocks wasn't enough to get the job done. I had my mind on completing this huge task and so last week I went to Target and found these children's foam blocks:

And, now, some blocking progress!

I finally cast-off Romney's Kerchief....I couldn't get myself to do the recommended cast-off...it seemed like it would be just too time consuming. Last week, I decided to go up to size 10 needles and cast-off. A bit of a risk, as I was almost out of yarn but it all worked out fine.

My Not At Sock Summit Socks...I loved knitting with The Sanguine Gryphon Skinny Bugga yarn although I was "meh" about the pattern....size 1 needles too...a never ending project but very nice results!

My Rose Lace Stole!! I love this! I love the lace pattern! I really love rectangular shape! I want to knit another rectangular shawl ASAP!

Andrea's Shawl - Loved this pattern too! Such a pretty combination of green! And, surprise! Look! The lace looks mostly like the pattern photos! (I thought I was making all kinds of mistakes!)

What did I learn from my block party? Wow, blocking can really accenuate lace patterns! And, all of my shawls blocked to the correct size. Even the Rose Lace Stole which I was soooo worried about. Now, to get some photos of all these finished projects onto Ravelry!

Crimson Tide! A New Pattern on Ravelry

2011-09-03T10:37:00.001-04:00

Crimson Tide Socks on Ravelry

I cannot begin to tell you how much I enjoy knitting colorwork projects! And, now, just in time for fall (better known around here as Football Season!), I've designed a sock pattern called Crimson Tide. Priced at $2 US, I am going to contribute all of my proceeds from sales of this pattern through January 9, 2012 (date of the College Football National Championship) to the Red Cross Disaster Fund. Originally, I wanted to raise funds for the Red Cross to help with Disaster Relief from this Spring's tornadoes in the Southeast, particularly in Alabama (hence, my design inspiration!). With the recent hurricanes in the Northeast and along the East Coast, I have decided to contribute to the general disaster relief fund to help wherever funds are needed most.

About Crimson Tide...a basic sock pattern really with an easy to memorize pattern that repeats around the leg of the sock and across the top of the foot. The colorwork striping on the bottom of the foot adds extra interest to the look of the sock (and minimizes the need to weave in loose ends!). I've used KnitPicks Palette in Pimento, Garnet Heather and White...perfect for all of you Alabama fans out there! This pattern would also be pretty in blues and greens for a more aquatic look.

I Couldn't Resist

2011-08-31T08:31:00.002-04:00

Kirsten Kapur has some of the prettiest designs on Ravelry. One of my current favorites is Cladonia. I think I'll knit it as part of the Small Knits Knitalong (SKKAL on Twitter) that Rachellynnec on Twitter is hosting. Yes, another knitalong, but, really, who could resist knitting such a pretty shawl!

Cladonia by Kirsten Kapur on Ravelry

Knit from the top down, it has a large stockinette section and a comparitively smallish lace section. Perfect for sitting in carpool (the stockinette section) and night-time knitting (the lace section). I found this beautiful yarn at The Loopy Ewe:

It's Alpaca with a Twist Baby Twist in Natural and Seasprite. It is amazingly soft! 100% Alpaca, DK weight. Hand wash and dry flat. Each skein is approximately 245 grams and 549 yards, so I am hoping to make two shawls from this beautiful yarn!

I love knitting with this yarn!

WIP Wednesday: Knitalong Progress

2011-08-24T12:43:00.006-04:00

Whew! With the kids going back to school (and, for the first time ever, going to two different schools), knitting has take a bit of a back seat to, ummm, driving. My daughter is in a school carpool which is a blessing and the kids get out at different times so the biggest distraction to my knitting is getting my son to evening cross country practice while my daughter is at dance. This is temporary (I hope!) because once it gets a bit cooler, his practices will be after school and not at night. Also, we will have a dance carpool too! Yay! More knitting on the way!
Needless to say, there are way too many projects on my needles right now! I seem to have a fear of the kitchener stitch so I have two and a half pairs of socks sitting on needles waiting to be finished. Just the kitchener stitch, that's all! The funny thing, I'm actually pretty good at the kitchener stitch once I sit down and get started. Also, two shawls waiting to be blocked, a half complete sweater and one mitten half-way completed. A definte case of startitis this summer! And, to add to all of that, there are two shawls that I absolutely must knit! Yikes! I need a plan to get these off the needles! Help! I need ideas!

Cladonia by Kirsten Kapur on Ravelry

Holden Shawlette by Mindy Wilkes on Ravelry

Definitely must knit both of these soon!

Sharing Secrets about Wollmeise Craziness

2011-08-11T16:41:00.000-04:00

Today I scored two skeins of Wollmeise yarn...that beautiful sock yarn that is so coveted and so hard to obtain! How did I do it? Let me share my secret....sshhh!

I had, in the past, been able to buy a skein from The Loopy Ewe (online) by keeping an eye on their Tweets. It pretty much was just luck that I noticed their Tweet while in the carpool line about a year ago. But...here's my just discovered secret....

About a week ago, I noticed in Sheri's Blog that they were expecting a shipment of Wollmeise very soon. So what did this resourceful knitter gal do? I text followed The Loopy Ewe on Twitter! And late this morning, The Loopy Ewe announced that Wollmeise was on line. I received this tweet via text as I was standing at the pay register at the grocery store!! Whoosh! I practically ran out of the grocery store!! No, I don't need help out to my car! (I just grabbed all the bags and threw them in the front seat). Would I like my receipt? Well, not really, but if I have to, sure. Got to the car, started it up and blasted the air conditioning to keep the refrigerated and frozen items from melting. (It was already 90+ degrees out!)

Wollmeise Sock Yarn in Turkise Markise from
© The Loopy Ewe

I got to The Loopy Ewe website on my phone and found my way over to Wollmeise 80/20 Sock Yarn. What I noticed on my past attempt to buy Wollmeise from TLE is that it literally goes in front of your eyes!! It is crazy, crazy, crazy! (That really is half the fun...finding out what you actually manage to get!) I'd put a skein in my cart and by the time I was checking out, it was gone, literally gone, from my cart! You just hope you can get through the checkout process with something in hand. But I think I caught some pretty colors: Nazar Boncugu and Turkise Markise.

So, keep track of Sheri's Blog and The Loopy Ewe Tweets for Wollmeise announcements and, hopefully, you will be somewhere that you can join in all the Wollmeise Craziness!! Good Luck!

What Size Do You Like Best?

2011-08-10T09:28:00.000-04:00

I'm talking about knitting needles, of course!!!

When it comes to DPNs (Double Pointed Needles), I find that I am rather picky about the length that I use. For instance, I've tried those tiny, 5 inch long DPNs for knitting socks but I always tend to lose stitches even if I spread the 64 or so stitiches amongst 4 needles. Seven inch needles tend to be too long and pointy when I use smaller size needles for knitting socks but are perfectly fine when I'm using a larger size to knit, for example, hats and mittens. My favorite DPNs are generally six inches long which is long enough not to lose stitches but not so long that I keep getting jabbed in the wrist! So...what size do you like best?

So Many Knitalongs!

2011-08-02T18:29:00.000-04:00

Have you been keeping track? So far this summer (well, since mid-May, which is almost summer around here!), I have joined five knitalongs! Plus one more knitalong queued! First, I joined SubwayKnits Rose Lace Stole Knitalong....check, project complete, waiting to be blocked. Second, I joined Camp Loopy Ewe Project 1 Knitalong...Andrea's Shawl...check, project complete, waiting to be blocked. Currently, I'm knitting The Loop Entrelac Tank in the Sweatshop of Love Summer Sweater Knitalong, (I'm a little behind but think I will catch up soon!) The Camp Loopy Ewe Project 2 (a ginormous thank you to all that chose Irish Hiking Mittens as their cable project! I'm knitting them too! And I should finish on time!) and NotGoingToSockSummit Socks.(Alas! I am still on sock numero uno!) Coming up BmoreCrafty's Small Project Knitalong which started August 1st! (I'm hoping to join in later this week). Whew!

So, what's the appeal of a knitalong? Knitting with someone! Talking through yarn selection, pattern selection, swatching, problems, alterations etc! And seeing everyone else's projects as they progress! Knitalongs keep me inspired!

Have any terrific knitalongs that you've really enjoyed? Share here!

Dream In Color: Classy

2011-07-25T13:24:00.000-04:00

I love this yarn! It is so soft and smooshy! Dream In Color Classy is a Hand-dyed Superwash 100% Merino Wool Worsted Weight yarn. Skeins are approximately 4 oz and 250 yards. That is a lot of yarn! More than enough for most one skein projects! Gauge is 4 - 4 1/2 stitches per inch on US Size 7-8 needles. I love that it's a Superwash yarn....machine wash then lay flat to dry or tumble dry (I use the low setting) and remove while still damp.

Dream in Color Classy in Beach Fog from

I just bought this Gorgeous Skein of Dream in Color Classy in Beach Fog from The Loopy Ewe in St. Louis. I love the the blues and light purples in this colorway. I'm going to use it for my 2nd Camp Loopy Ewe Project - from Sheri's Blog:

"Project Two is called “Hiking in the Mountains”. Doesn’t everyone have to go on a hike when they’re at camp? I know that it’s not always in the mountains, but it always felt like you were dragging yourself up a steep hill/mountain, by the very end of the hike, waiting for it to be done. (Or was that just me?) For this project, the challenge is to knit or crochet either a pair of socks or a pair of mittens or a pair of gloves, in an adult size. (No fingerless mitts this time around.) The other part of the challenge is that the pattern you use needs to contain cables, which are always fun to do!"

As you can guess, I am going to knit Irish Hiking Mittens and I have been so thrilled to see that some other people joining in the project are knitting them too! Thank you everyone!

Something New! Entrelac Knitting!

2011-07-19T13:15:00.026-04:00

Have you ever looked at a knitting pattern and just sighed and thought, "That is sooo pretty but I'm sure that technique is waaay too difficult for me?" That is exactly what I thought looking at all things Entrelac...scarves, totebags, felted tote bags, sweaters....so pretty and, I was so sure, much too difficult for me.

Then, through the magic of Twitter, I saw @sweatshopoflove's The Loop Entrelac Top. What an adorable summer sweater! I queued it when it went on Ravelry. And there it sat for a year, a whole year!

The Loop Entrelac Top by Allyson Dykhuizen

Really cute, right? Well, I have never tried knitting anything Entrelac and that diagonal, diamond-shaped, basketweave pattern was more than intimidating! But then I saw (again, on Twitter!) that Allyson was having a summer sweater knitalong and one of the selections was this very sweater! I was in! The time frame was June 1st to July 31st....more than 8 weeks plus Allyson made a how to knit Entrelac Video!!! Her written instructions are very easy to follow and the video is terrific!

Just so you know, Entrelac is basically just knit stitches, purl stitches, knit 2 together, purl 2 together and picking up stitches....really easy stuff!

So, despite a busy summer, waaay too many projects on my needles, and a lingering fear of this new technique, I finally cast on The Loop Entrelac Tank Top last week. As of right now, I am almost done with both Entrelac straps! I should be onto the main stockinette sections tonight! And, PS, since this sweater is for my daughter, I made the straps a little short and put them on stitch holders so I could get a perfect length for her. Actually, I'm hoping I have a few more sections of Entrelac to knit!

Do you have any knitting techniques that you've been afraid to try? Share here!

Yo Adrian!

2011-07-06T13:39:00.002-04:00

Yo, as in YO, a familiar abbreviation to knitters for yarn over. A simple stitch really...just bring the yarn when knitting from the back of the work to the front of the work by going under the right needle and, then, back over the right needle to knit the next stitch. The result is an extra stitch. Sounds so simple, doesn't it? I thought so too until I started the lace edging for Andrea's Shawl.

Andrea's Shawl on Ravelry

What happened? I knit the first 24 rows (that sounds like a lot but the edging is knit first in a 7-9 stitch pattern with a 4 Row repeat so it really was only a few minutes of knitting). It didn't look anything like it was supposed to look. Why? It appears that I have been knitting YO completely wrong forever!! Instead of under and over, my yarn went over and under. Honestly, I never noticed a problem until this pattern. So, I hurried on over to the Knitwitch website and watched her video on yarn over. With the correct stitch correctly on my needles, I've knit about 100 repeats of the pattern now:

I love the way the YO's (when knit correctly!!) make this lattice pattern:

With only 30 or so repeats left, I plan to start the lace portion of this shawl tonight. Then, I'm going to go through some of the patterns that I've knit using YO incorrectly and decide if there's anything I'd like to try again soon to see how the project knits with the correct stitch!

Summer Camp

2011-06-10T11:46:00.001-04:00

This summer, I am going to participate in The Loopy Ewe Camp Loopy Ewe (Project 1).
Check out Sheri of The Loopy Ewe's Blog: for details. Today (June 10th) is the last day to get 20% off yarn that you purchase for your project. Plus, if you finish on time and post a picture on the Loopy Ewe website, you can get extra Frequent Shopper Points that accumulate for an extra savings down the road. My yarn Just arrived yesterday....(I only ordered on Monday)...they get their shipments out fast, fast, fast!

It's Blue Sky Alpacas in Alpaca Silk, a 50% Alpaca/50% Silk fingering weight yarn. The colors are Kiwi (#131) and Peridot (#148). I can't even describe how incredibly soft it is. I'm going to knit Andrea's Shawl, which will be the first time I will try knitting a shawl with two colors of yarn. I haven't decided which color should be the primary color though. What do you all think? Should the shawl be dark with light stripes or light with dark stripes?

And don't forget, today is the last day to qualify for the 20% off Camp Loopy Ewe discount!

Rose Lace Stole - Subway Knits KAL - Progress Update

2011-06-03T13:15:00.000-04:00

I'm knitting along with Maria aka @venusfueri on Twitter and several others on the Rose Lace Stole by Susanna IC. Maria has a Podcast called Subway Knits (one of my favorites...you can find it on itunes and is the moderator of the Subway Knits Podcast Group...which is where I found the knit-along.

I love this yarn! It is Malabrigo Lace Weight in a medium to dark blue called Paris Nights. And I love the rectangular shape of this wrap. As a general rule, I would prefer to wear a rectangular shape wrap over a traiangular shaped one. I can't wait to see the flower pattern that I'm almost ready to start. So far, the pattern is relatively simple...Six more rows until I get to the lace chart...I've been saying that for almost a week now but, unfortunately, the last week of school and ballet recitals have gotten in the way of good, quality, concentrate on knitting lace time. But get back to it I will. Oh, and there is this small problem:

Somehow in the first repeat, I knit 6 stitiches instead of 5 and, generally, I don't notice it until the end of the row. And then I have to tink! (I'd never be able to pick up the stitches if I frogged a row!) This has probably happened now about half a dozen times on the first half! That's a lot of tinking! I find I have to really concentrate on the knit row and then I usually repeat the pattern back to myself on the purl row just to make sure I still have the pattern correct.

So, are you a tinker or a frogger? How do you make sure you stay on track with projects like this? Share with me, please!

Summertime...almost here!

2011-05-24T08:57:00.000-04:00

Today I stopped by a small local yarn store on the way back from an errand. Not that I really needed any more yarn....just to stop and look because someone had said they liked their selection of yarn. In the past, when I've stopped in, I've found the selection pretty basic and plain but not today!

Look what I found!

It's Colinette Jitterbug Sock Yarn in Ruby Saffron. Doesn't it just scream SUMMERTIME to you?! Look at those neon corals, pinks, peaches, and golden yellows. From what I recall, Colinette makes Jitterbug in larger skeins that in the past...this one is a more than adequate 400 yards. I thought I would work on some socks for my daughter this week during the recital dance dress rehearsals. The theater stays fairly dark and I think I may be able to see this yarn even in a state of semi-darkness! Now to wind it before it's time to go!

Yarn Review: Socks-to-Be Yarn

2011-05-19T13:08:00.003-04:00

Recently, Erin of Socks-to-be Yarn asked me to review her hand-dyed yarns and sent me a sample after asking what colorway I preferred! Wasn't that nice of her? You all probably know I'm rather fond of blues by now so I chose this:

Soft and squishy, I couldn't wait to try it out. The variations of blue are so pretty. Check out some of Erin's other colorways here. Before long, I was knitting a sock, just a basic vanilla one, to get an idea for how the colors showed up:

Pretty nice, right? And, lastly, here's a pic of the completed sock:

Some information on the yarn: It's 2-ply Sock Weight 100% SW Merino Wool Yarn. A 100 gm/3.5 oz skein has approximately 365 m/400 yards. The Knitting Gauge per the label is 6 stitches = 1 in on Size 3-5 Needles. The Crochet Gauge per the lable is 16-20 sc = 4 inces on E-7 hooks. (3.5mm - 4.5mm).

When knitting socks, I prefer knitting sock weight yarn with size 2 needles (which I used here) and I had a gauge of 8 stitches per inch which is generally where I wind up with sock yarn.

I love the way the sock turned out and I can't wait to try Socks-to-be yarn again. You can find Socks-to-be Yarn on Etsy, Twitter and the Socks to Be Yarn Blog.

Disclosure: Socks-to-be Yarn provided iKnit2Purl2 with a 50 g sample of Sock Weight Handpainted Yarn free for review. iKnit2Purl2 was not compensated for this blogpost. All opinions in this blogpost are that of iKnit2Purl2's and do not necessarily reflect those of Socks-to-be Yarn.

Whatcha Been Up To?

2011-05-11T12:51:00.004-04:00

I feel like I've been quite a bit MIA from my blog the past few weeks. Between part-time accounting work, crazy kiddo schedules and trying to design some knitting patterns (more on that later), I haven't been able to sit down long enough to actually post something here in a while.

I'm having a lot of fun trying to design some socks. I carry a graph paper notebook with me everywhere. I'm almost at the point where I can write the pattern down and put something on Ravelry so stay tuned for an update.

I'm also knitting some socks for my husband. I've knitted socks for my daughter (who says thank you and wears them), my son (who says thank you) and for me (I love my hand-knitted socks). But I haven't tackled anything for my husband until now. Of course, he wanted dark socks which I am finding are very difficult to knit in the evening. I'm using yarn from The Sanguine Gryphon in Sooty Dancer (Bugga) which is knitting up quite nicely in this diamond pattern. I wanted to knit something a little bit more interesting than a plain sock and this pattern isn't difficult and provides a nice, simple detail. Hopefully, perfect for my hubby!

I'm thinking of trying to knit a shawl or wrap soon but can't decide on a pattern...any suggestions? My daughter's dance recitals and two, yes two, weeks of rehearsals are coming up (next week start's the rehearsals) so I am feeling a bit of a need to start a new project to get me through those looonnnnnggggg nights of rehearsals. So...whatcha been up to? Tell us here!

.....and the winner is

2011-04-12T10:52:00.001-04:00

Just used the random number generator at random.org and the winner is.....Lunia Titus!

Congratulations!

Please e-mail me so I can get your yarn in the mail ASAP!

Thank you everyone for participating in my yarn give-away. Check out my blog every once and a while because another yarn give-away will be coming soon!

I Have New Socks!

2011-04-11T13:00:00.003-04:00

I am SOOO excited! My first sock pattern, April Showers Bring May Flowers, is now available on Ravelry as a free pattern download!

The Spring Weather here in the Atlanta area was definitely the inspiration for these socks. Lots of rain brings out all of the beautiful flowers...the cherrytrees, followed by the dogwoods, magnolias, wisteria and azaelas! People start planting their annual summer flower gardens right about the first of May here. Lots of impatiens and begonias! Such a pretty time of year!

I used Knit Picks Palette Yarn which is a fingering weight yarn and 100% Peruvian Highland Wool. I used less than 2 skeins of Celestial as the main color, and way less than 1 skein each of fushcia and sky for the flowers and raindrops.

Since I've tried some colorwork techniques this past winter with Selbu Mittens and Fair Isle Mittens , I thought I would like to knit some socks with colorwork. As you all already know, I have been quite busy knitting socks these past few weeks. Definitely portable as I drive the kiddos here and there (there's baseball season for my son and lots of rehearsals and dance classes for my daughter's Spring Performance and Recitals). But being in an It's Spring frame of mind, I wanted to knit socks that reminded my of Springtime.

A little bit about this pattern...it's more or less just a basic stockinette stitch sock with some colorwork added to the leg. There are only 31 rows of colorwork, of which 14 rows are solid colors. And you never work with more than 2 colors at once. Not too difficult, right? It was a lot of fun to design and playing with the Knit Visualizer software was really a lot of fun! You can find the the pattern on Raverly. It's free!

Happy Spring!

So...I told you mine....Yarn-Give-Away

2011-04-06T08:24:00.001-04:00

Yep, you know all about mine, told you all about it in my last blogpost...Time to Knit. So, share with me... when do you knit or crochet? Tell me all about your favorite crafting time, where you are etc. And...I'm having another Yarn-Give-A-Way. Two Skeins of Shibui Sock Yarn in this oh-so-spring-y pink.. Each skein is approximately 190 yards. And, it's machine washable! Can't beat that when you want to get back to knitting or crocheting! Here's a pic!

How do you enter? Just a leave a comment below under this blogpost and tell me when you spend time knitting or crocheting. Leave as many different comments as you like. I will use a random number generator to decide the winner. All entries must be submitted by April 11th at 11:59 pm. (Atlanta, GA timezone). I'll announce the winner on April 12th!

Time to Knit

2011-04-03T16:10:00.000-04:00

Topic for Day seven: 3rd April. Your knitting and crochet time...Write about your typical crafting time. When it is that you are likely to knit – alone or in more social environments?

When do I like to knit? Whenever I can at the moment. After I get done with work, in the carpool line, waiting at my daughter's dance studio. Sometimes, first thing in the morning, if I get up early enough. (But that has to be pretty mindless knitting since there is generally only a few minutes available). In the evening, after everyone is home, watching TV, staying up much later than I should. And, the, I'll start all over again the next day!

Knitting is a very relaxing pasttime for me. It's also is a very good creative outlet whether I'm knitting someone else's pattern or improvising something on my own.

Well, all this blogging was a lot of fun. Nice to journalize my knitting habits and adventures. And nice to learn about all of yours.

Stay tuned as I am planning a yarn give-away sometime next week.

Thank you for reading my blog!

Something to Aspire To

2011-04-02T10:20:00.000-04:00

Today's Topic: Day six: 2nd April. Something to aspire to. Is there a pattern or skill that you don’t yet feel ready to tackle but which you hope to (or think you can only dream of) tackling in the future, near or distant? Is there a skill or project that makes your mind boggle at the sheer time, dedication and mastery of the craft? Maybe the skill or pattern is one that you don’t even personally want to make but can stand back and admire those that do. Maybe it is something you think you will never be bothered to actually make bu can admire the result of those that have.

I would love to knit all of these:

Brooklyn Tweed's Hemlock Ring Blanket

Brooklyn Tweed's Girasole Blanket

Elizabeth Zimmerman's Pi Shawl

I have yarn right now for both the Hemlock Ring Blanket and Girasole. If you look at my Ravelry queue, you will notice that (a) all of these lovely patterns are behind a lot of sock and hat patterns and (b) I queued them a while ago.

So what's holding me back? Anticipation of how long they will take. They look so big. And that is very intimidating. Socks and hats can take two weeks or less to make. More or less instantly gratifying. Easy to take in the car when I'm driving the kids around. And they look so complicated. Not good when you are knitting in 20-30 minute intervals here and there throughout the day.

But they are so beautiful. And I will knit them. Someday.

I loves a good song with an accordian

2011-04-01T09:43:00.003-04:00

Topic Day Five: 1st April. And now for something completely different. This is an experimental blogging day. There are no rules of a topic to blog about but this post should look at a different way to present content on your blog.

I love a good song with an accordian. And it is about a holiday! And it's one of my favorite songs eveh!

RIP Danny Federici ( January 23, 1950 - April 17, 2008)

Letting Go

2011-03-31T13:06:00.001-04:00

Day Four: 31st March. Where are they now?

Today's Topic: Whatever happened to your __________? Write about the fate of a past knitting project. Whether it be something that you crocheted or knitted for yourself or to give to another person. An item that lives with you or something which you sent off to charity.

I will admit, I'm a bit of a control freak. For example, I used to not be able to have my mom or my mother-in-law help me out in the kitchen. (i.e. when they stayed with me after my children were born). I hated to walk in and find something where it didn't belong. I never said anything; they were so nice to come down and help, but ohhhh those types of things bugged me. I guess having children helped me in that department. Kids definitely have a mind of their own. And, now, I welcome the help when the moms visit and wait until they've gone home to return things to their proper place.

How does this relate to knitting, you wonder. Well, it's taken me a while to get to the point where I'd not worry about what would happen to a gift that I knitted for someone....would they lose the socks? Well, let me tell you...they lose the socks...both of my kiddos have lost socks that I knitted for them. It's just the way it goes. They don't love me any less. They don't love those socks any less (maybe they didn't completely love them to begin with...some were too small or too large or really, I'll admit, not very attractive). Kids lose stuff. Husbands lose stuff too, Especially husbands who travel for business. I can't even tell you how many of my husbands (store-bought) socks have made it to the Land of Lost Socks.

They lose hats too...my husband left one somewhere. hmmmm...not quite sure where. My niece left a hat here at Christmas. (At least I know where it is).

And, they try to take care of hand-made knits but don't always know how. For example this sweater hung on a hanger for a while. The straps have stretched out so much that the sweater is un-wearable. I intend to fix it. But I haven't quite figured out what to do...take the original straps off and start again....wash and re-block and hope the straps shrink back to their original size? Any suggestion about what to do would be greatly appreciated.

So I don't worry about the gifts anymore. They get lost, they get stretched out, they shrink. Oh well. I can always knit more.

Ahhh...The Fine Art of Yarn and Other Knitty Storage

2011-03-30T12:05:00.002-04:00

Today's Topic: How do you keep your yarn wrangling organised?

A few months ago, someone on Twitter commented about these storage bags fron Woodland Woolworks. At $2.50 a bag, I considered them a steal and immediately ordered 6 small and 6 large to store my stash....Love them! They fit under my bed (crazy yarn storage but what can I say?) or at least the part of the bed that isn't taken up with all of my scrapbooking and photos. And they fit under a chair. And I can see what I have....no opening or unzipping bags to peek inside! It's all visible! And, did I mention, inexpensive?

Storage Bag from WoodlandWoolworks.com

Since receiving them, I have more or less organized my stash....Malabrigo, Blue Moon Fiber Arts, Pagewood Farms, Lorna's Laces, Madeline Tosh, Quince and Company... all go in separate bags. Some yarn is just stored by weight since I don't really have enought of a collection of a lot of brands....sock yarn in particular because there are soooooo many pretty sock yarns out there. Note to self: Look for Quince and Co yarn...I didn't notice it when I was going through my yarn and planning some projects last week.

I haven't been that interested in listing my stash on Ravelry but recently I did go through my knitting books (another collection of sorts, I might add) and I updated my Ravelry Library. I also put all of the knitting books in one place so I would know where to look for them!

As far as knitting needles are concerned, I do confess that until a few weeks ago, most were piled up in a tote bag. And, by piled up, I mean piled up! For a while, it seemed like I would buy knitting needles every time I bought yarn at the Local Yarn Stores. But I ordered a very nice Needle Organizer from Namaste (it no longer seems to be available or I would give a link). I also bought a 2 inch notebook binder (the kind my kids use for school) and an assortment of pen and pencil holders that fit inside the binder. I used the Namaste bag for my smaller needles 0 -5, mostly DPN's, some circular needles, stitch holders, stitch markers etc. The notebook is filled with mostly circular needles size 6 - 15. Of course, at any time, you may see some stray sets of needles around my house.

Don't get me wrong though....there is plenty of yarn lying around my house for me to ooogle and pet. When I get new yarn, it is immediately placed on the counter in the hallway so that I can look at it and plan what I am going to knit with it. Sometimes, only the yarn/project that I am currently working on sits on that coveted spot in the hallway. Sometimes, it's yarn that I've had a while that I am interested in knitting. And, sometimes, I just pull out all of my storage bags so that I can look at all of my yarn and plan, oh, I don't know, the next 3 or 4 or 12 projects. And, by the way, I still have 2 or 3 bags left to fill! Hmmmm, where can I go shopping? Half the fun of having a collection is enjoying it, right? How do you store your yarn....share here!

Hmmm...

2011-03-29T13:03:00.002-04:00

Today, I am going to take a look back at my so-called knitting progress over the past year. (I wish the topic was how my stash has grown over the past year - by leaps and bounds - perhaps too much! But that will be a blog post for another day!)

Last year at this time I was a Twitter and Ravelry newbie and I probably hadn't even thought about a blog yet. I was just beginning to get interested in knitting again...I learned to knit from my grandmother when I was about 9 and have gone through knitting phases over the years...no previous knitting phase has been quite like this one though. I attribute this lasting interest to Twitter and Ravelry.

@Voolenvine's Vinelle

So, about this time last year, I knitted Bella's Mittens, which were my first learn about it on Twitter and find it on Ravelry project. Then, I knit @Voolenvine's sweater, Vinelle.

Later came Ishbel, joined a sweater twitablong with @jbee42 and @cheekytart. And met @knittingknoobie when I visited NYC last summer!

Test Knit Granny Bomber Jacket
for @Sweatshopoflove

Then, I test knit a sweater with intarsia for @sweatshopoflove.

Irish Hiking Mittens Designed by Me!!

And I even designed a pair of mitts and a pair of mittens. I guess my knitting has progressed quite a bit since last year! Learned to knit lace and intarsia. I had never knit mittens before and here I was at the end of 2010 designing my own! And I am noticing that I am a bit of a binge knitter. Handbags knitted for holiday gifts in 2009 was followed up with hats for holiday gifts in 2010. Now, it's socks. Lots and lots of socks. For me, this kind of binge knitting gives me a chance to develop certain skills and see how different yarns work in similar patterns. Of course, that's not really why I binge knit...it's more like...Oh! This is fun! Let me knit another one! Hmmmm.....what's next? Any suggestions?

Knitting & Crochet Blog Week 2011 - Day One

2011-03-28T11:19:00.003-04:00

I just found out about Knitting and Crochet Blog Week 2011. It runs from March 28th to April 3rd 2011 and is a week of fibre-arts related posts where many members of the knitting and crochet community worldwide blog daily together on the same subjects and topics. Wow! Sounds like fun! The BIG question is, think I can keep up? We'll see....

So today's topic is....A Tale of Two Yarns

My absolute favorite yarn is Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport. Socks and Shawls knit up quickly with this yarn. And it is soooo squishy and soft using a size 2 needle. Colors are great and I have found it at Jimmy Beans Wool, The Loopy Ewe and Eat, Sleep, Knit...three of my favorite online yarn stores.

River Rapids Sock in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport in Midway

And then what could I say about Malabrigo worsted that hasn't been said by everybody else? Soft, soft soft to the touch. Again, I found some at all of the three yarn stores listed above. Sadly, most of my local yarn stores do not have much in the way of either of these yarns. However, one local yarn store has been much better lately about stocking all the pretty yarns that I love to find online.

Brattleboro Hat in Malabrigo Worsted - Verde Esperanza

Startitis Attacks!

2011-03-24T10:22:00.001-04:00

Oh my goodness! I can't seem to stop casting on new projects! I have one pair of socks almost complete...just the toe decreases on the second sock and I'm done. But....

Almost Done With This Sock!

I pulled out yarn this morning for two more pairs of socks. I've already cast-on one pair. Both are just plain, basic socks, the second may have some kind of colorwork but, really, two? Well, no, maybe three because I'm thinking about a particular skein of yarn making a really nice pair of socks. What am I thinking?

Socks for My Husband

This moring, I gathered up all of my sock yarn for the purpose of picking out some for upcoming projects. I'm going to match the pattern to the yarn instead of my usual vice-versa. Kind of a priority list of yarn - an assortment of what I would like to knit over the next few months. Not necessarily my favorite yarns...I'm picking yarns for people who will be the beneficiaries of all of my sock-y knittiness.

Really, there's quite a bit more sock yarn around here than I care to admit. My children even had the audacity to question whether I could ever actually knit that many pairs of socks. I patiently told them that my stash was as much a collection of something that I liked to look at as it was something that I liked to knit with. :) Hence, the big pile on my bed. I may even have to sleep on the sofa if I can't bear to pack it all away today....good thing hubby's on a business trip!

Spring Socks for Me!

Brooklyn Handspun

2011-03-11T12:33:00.000-05:00

Yes, more new yarn. to love...and, again, from The Loopy Ewe. It's so pretty and incredibly soft. It's called Aquatic and it's dyed up by Marie in Brooklyn, NY. The yarn base is called "Soft Spun Plus". At about 375 yards, it should make a beautiful pair of socks for me...I love the blues and greens combined with the coppery shade of brown. It's 100% Superwash Merino and, did I mention, so so soft.

"Aquatic" from BrooklynHandspun

Think I'm going to use this to knit Spring Forward Socks which appeal to me not only because of the beautiful Spring weather we are having right now in Georgia but also because the pattern is very, very pretty and (I'm hoping) easy to memorize. Can't wait to start!

Oh Noes! What Did I Do to My Sock???!!!

2011-03-08T12:07:00.001-05:00

Sunday night, I finished turning the heel on my second River Rapids Sock. I turned the heel perfectly. No extra stitches as sometimes happens. Wasn't short stitiches as happens on other occasions. It was perfect.

And, then, I compared it to the first sock.

Oh noes! The heels were not remotely the same at all.

See?

What did I do on Sock #1???

I had perfectly followed the pattern for sock number 2.

So what in the world did I do for number 1???????

River Rapids Sock #1 - Great Pattern!

Apparently, I didn't follow the pattern instructions toooooo closely.

So, what's a girl to do? I frogged to the end of the cuff....no more perfectly turned heel, no more perfect, exactly followed the instructions heel. Even though these socks are for me, I'd like them to be the same (as much as I am capable of doing that).

So rippppppppp. And then I tried to guess what I did. Well, attempt number 2 (in which I just repeated rows 1 and 2 of the heel instructions) resulted in too long a heel and the tension was all wrong. Hmmm...what's next...well, I was fairly frustrated at this point so I frogged back to a point where the two heels are the same length. The cuffs matched up perfectly. So, I figure I will take Spindiva's advice and avoid clogs when I wear these socks!

By the way, I am using Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport. The colorway is Midway and it is perfect for the River Rapids Sock Pattern. Soft and squishy and I can't wait to wear them! I bought the yarn at Jimmy Beans Wool, another interned yarn store that I love, love, love!

Hopefully, in a few days, I will have Pics of the finished socks. Stay tuned!

Yarn Love

2011-03-04T10:58:00.000-05:00

I'll admit, I am addicted to yarn. Just addicted. Love it. Love to look at it. Love to knit it. Love to find new yarn so I love all of my fellow yarnies' blogposts and tweets about new yarn. I could look at yarn websites all day long. Last week, my husband might say I spent a little too much time looking at The Loopy Ewe, one of my fave, fave, fave internet yarn stores. This time, I found some beautiful, new to me yarn, Yarn Love. in the colorways, Nirvana on the left (one of my son's favorite bands) and Belle on the right (my daughter's middle name). Guess I was missing my kiddos while they were at school that day!

The yarn itself is called Juliet, its a sock yarn, 80% superwash merino and 20% nylon, 420 yards. I can't wait to start knitting my kids some more socks! Guess who gets which socks!

We Did It!

2011-03-01T12:41:00.001-05:00

Yes...my daughter and I both finished our Special Olympic Scarves....on time! Here they are:

Didn't my dughter do a great job on her scarf? It's the one on the right. I think I like it better than the one I knitted. Here's a closer look:

I really love this year's colors...so bright and cheery. We are hoping that it's still cold enough in Virginia to wear them!

Lots and Lots of Sock Patterns to Share!

2011-02-17T13:31:00.001-05:00

Okay y'all...I feel so bad...I was doing really well keeping up with my blog & now I'm a bit behind again! I even started this post a few days ago. By golly, it's getting complete right now! Here goes!

I'm making a list with links of the wonderful sock patterns that everyone shared so I can start knitting socks: (all of the sock patterns with * are free!)

Knitmore Girls Plain Vanilla Socks*, Plain Vanilla Socks by Keri McKiernan*, Monkey by Cookie A*, Kalajoik*, Popsicle , Pom Star Socks, Charade *, Maeva * , Hearts Abound Socks * , Be Mine , Basic Ribbed Socks * , Yarn Harlots Plain Sock , Swedish Fish Socks , Mesmer , Milo , Spring Forward Socks * , Baby Cable Rib , Skew Socks * , Angee , Jaywalker * , Maeva * ,

Enjoy! I am going to get backed to knitting some socks...first up, some improvised plain socks for my son!

Knitmore Girls' Vanilla Socks - I love these!

YAY! We Have A Winner!

2011-02-01T06:20:00.003-05:00

Just used the random number generator at random.org and the winner is.....Rachel!

Congratulations!

Please e-mail me so I can get your yarn in the mail ASAP!

Thank you everyone for participating in my first-ever yarn give-away. Check out my blog every once and a while because the next yarn give-away just might be un-announced!

I'm so in Love...

2011-01-28T10:34:00.001-05:00

with this handbag, that is. It's Namaste's Zuma and I love it!

My Namaste Zuma Bag

Don't get me wrong. I'm not a Material Girl. Expensive Handbags are not for me. And this was a steal! If you follow my tweets (I'm iKnit2Purl2 on Twitter), you might have seen a tweet last Sunday mentioning a 50% Off Namste Sale by Little Knits . What a deal! I was so excited that I had to share it with everyone!

So what do I love about my new handbag? Well, first, I love the size...I have several large, not huge but large handbags, that get a little heavy and a little cumbersome. Zuma is a little smaller at roughly 9" W by 11" H with a 17" Base. And its lightweight which is perfect since I tote a knitting bag along with a handbag about half the time. Open it up and there's plenty of room for stuff. Plus 2 zipper compartments on the outside. I love this feature as I can stuff my keys and phone into one compartment for easy access. It closes on top with three magnets. Usually, I prefer zip tops but the 3 magnets (one of which snaps) seem to prevent the contents from falling out as I throw my purse in the backseat of the car or beside me on the passenger seat. A regular occurence as I pick up and drop off kiddos at school and other activities.

I'm already thinking about which color Zuma to get for summer!

I Wanna Knit Socks - Yarn Give-A-Way

2011-01-24T08:50:00.001-05:00

I want to knit socks...I want to knit socks all during February. Maybe even during March. Not just the two pairs that are lanquishing in little project bags on a corner of my counter. I wan to knit Fun Socks. Your favorite socks.

So...I'm having a Yarn-Give-A-Way. Two Skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Yarn in Ysolda Red. Each skein is approximately 215 yards. Enough to make your own pair of socks. And red for Valentine's Day!

How do you enter? Just a leave a comment below and tell me about your favorite (knitted) sock pattern and where I can find it. Leave as many different comments as you like. I will use a random number generator to decide the winner. All entries must be submitted by January 31st at 11:59 pm. I'll announce the winner on February 1st!

I'm looking forward to hearing about your favorite sock patterns!

Special Olympic Scarves - Revisited

2011-01-20T08:18:00.000-05:00

This year's colors for the Special Olympic Scarves

Last year, my then 12 year old daughter and I knit scarves for the Idaho Special Olympics. Our challenge was to see if she could knit one scarf faster than I could knit two...I'm proud to say she did! This year we are going to try again. I will probably only knit one this year as I seem to have a major startitis thing going on. My daughter loves the offical colors of the yarn...Red Heart Blue and Turqua.

We found a list of states' deadlines for receiving these scarves at this website. I'll let my daugher decide where to send the scarf. I'm glad she is doing this again. She didn't knit anything else last year after she was done with that 6 foot loooonnnng oh mom its sooooo loooooonng scarf. But she's learning how to knit and she's doing something for someone else. Last night, she cast on the scarf completely without any help, found her stitch counter and started knitting! Maybe one day she'll decide to knit something for herself but in the meantime I'm happy to pass along this skill that I learned from my grandmother!

Knit-A-Long with The SweatShop of Love - Week 1

2011-01-17T08:32:00.001-05:00

I love Snow Weeks!! My children had five, count them, five snow days last week! The ice was awful (not many snowplows in Georgia!) and every day at noon, almost like clockwork, my daughter would announce that she had just received a text from her BFF saying that school was canceled the next day! My daughter would quickly veryify this on the school system's website and, by Wednesday afternoon, we already knew that we'd be home til Tuesday! We did get a little stir crazy and a lot of housecleaning did get done...and there was knitting....lots and lots of knitting!

So, in addition to all of the NaKniMitMo mitten knitting, I started Beatnik as part of the The SweatShop of Love Sweater Knit-A-Long. And can you believe it??...I stayed up with this weeks goal!!! We'll see what next week brings since we'll be back to our regular schedules! (and no more snow is forecasted!)

Week 1 Progress on my Beatnik Sweater!

I think I may add a few rows before I start the waist decreases. This picture shows my progress through Row 8 of the first set of Charts. Maybe about an inch more for a little added length. I am finding that the charts get easier to read as I get further into the pattern. It is a little bit like learning a new language. So far so good...hopefully I will have time to keep up with the knitalong. I've actually planned how I want my knitting to go this week since I'd like to make progress on my mittens too!

Norwegian Selbu Mittens - Update!

2011-01-14T08:15:00.000-05:00

I am really enjoying these mittens. I'm hoping they fit my daughter but the pattern is perfect for trying the Selbu technique. Why? I think mostly because this pattern uses sport weight yarn so there are less than 60 stitches per row (48 in the beginning). So you get pretty quick results. And it's a gorgeous design that isn't too complicated. After all of that fussing with trying a black bacground with a white design, I am really glad I went back to the traditional white background and black design. I'm already looking forward to knitting another pair. The next ones will probably be more traditional. I like Terri Shea's book, Selbuvotter, which has many beautiful Selbu patterns and provides a great history of these traditional Norwegian black and white Mittens. Check out Terri Shea on Ravelry. These patterns are gorgeous!

I think the palm side (and eventual thumb) have a beautiful design! All in all, this looks much more complicated than it really is so don't be afraid to try it. If you look closely, you can see on the palm side that every other row is merely alternating black and white. The most difficult part, for me so far, of knitting these Selbu Mittens (and the fair isle mittens previously) is learning how to keep the yarn tension correct. It's getting better but does take a little practice.

Snowed In...So Why Is It So Difficult To Get This Mitten Started???

2011-01-11T08:15:00.002-05:00

We have snow in Atlanta! Not just a dusting (which is usually enough to close school for a day) but about 6 inches! This is the view of my front yard and the street...all snow covered and a LOT icy.

No snowplows here in Georgia! And the roads are too hilly to navigate if you don't have four wheel drive. Even my husband stayed home yesterday! The kids played outside and my husband shoveled the driveway (thank you Sweetheart!). Today, my husband would like to get on a plane for a business trip. His flight on Monday was canceled along with a gazillion others. Right now, all I am hearing on the news is "Stay home...the roads are too icy". And, since there is another snow day, the kids are still asleep (teenagers!) and I am with our Westie, Stella, who most definitely does not like this much snow! So, for now, coffee and knitting - how good is that?

So what have I been knitting? Well, the Fair Isle Mittens were completed over the weekend. I like the way they came out but the definitely need to be blocked and there are a bazillion ends to weave in. These mittens are much heavier than I would have thought - the yarn is 2 ply Jamieson's Shetland Spindrift. I guess all of the carrying of yarn results in a very heavy mitten.

I'm looking forward to trying Fair Isle again but right now I am knitting a pair of Norwegian Selbu Mittens. Well, trying to at least.

It took FOUR trys to get the cuff of the first mitten going. I felt like Goldilocks with knitting needles! First, I tried US Size 2.5 needles-the cuff looked way too small after 12 rows. Then, I tried US Size 4...the needles were metal and after 5 or 6 rows I just gave up because I kept getting jabbed in the wrist...not something I wanted for two whole mittens worth of knitting. I tried again with a circular size 4 but I knew the Magic Loop and Stranded Knitting would drive me crazy. So, I found a set of US Size 3 needles...kind of long and a little jabby but bamboo so not so bad. Oh, and after trying, three times to knit a black cuff/background with a contrasting white, I switched to a white cuff/background with contrasting black. By George, I think I got it...so far so good. And, as a friend often reminds me, I'm not worrying about the gauge or size...they will fit somebody! I'm using Cascade 220 Sport which is nice and soft and, hopefully, will knit up quickly...there's only 48 stitches per row. Since I am expecting that the kids will be back in school tomorrow, I hope to get a lot done today.

New Year's Resolutions - Knitting Wise Of Course!

2010-12-31T06:30:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year Everyone! What are your knitting resolutions and goals for 2011? I have lots planned for my needles this year! First up, NaKniMitMo - a Ravelry group for National Knitting Mittens Month. Mittens I'd like to knit include Hermione's Mittens and Norwegian Selbu Mittens. Of course, I'd also like to do another pair of Irish Hiking Mittens. I actually started the Hermione Mittens a few days ago and, so far, I'm doing okay with the colorwork and the chart reading!

Hermione Mittens from http://www.ravelry.com/ - In progress!

Along with NaKniMitMo, I've joined Allyson's (The SweatShop of Love) sweater Knit-A-Long...a sweater for me. I'm going to knit this from Knitty

Beatnik from http://www.knitty.com/

I found yarn at KnitPicks and I'm going to use City Tweed DK Yarn in Splash. I've already ordered the yarn so shhhh! I may get started a little early. The Knit-a-Long officially begins January 10th!
Also on my 2011 Knitting List, finish the 2 pairs of socks that I'm about 75% complete on...why can't I finish them? And start some new socks...and some shawls...and hats...and...and...and...

So, what's on your 2011 Knitting List? Share Here!!!

Nutcracker Hat Challenge - The Results Are In!

2010-12-20T07:51:00.003-05:00

I did it! I stretched the time period out a bit...last hat was finished on December 14 but I knitted Nine hats in just over 2 weeks! Yay! My fave was A Hat Fit For A Boyfriend. I knitted six of those. I absolutely loved the way the top of the hat turned out. I'd knit this hat again and again and may have to knit one for me in January if the weather here in Georgia stays as (unseasonably) cold as the past 3 weeks have been! I'm probably going to try to get one more Turn A Square done before Christsmas. I want to make this for my son in his school colors (green with gold and a little white). In the meantime, I'm finishing two "girl" hats - Brattleboro Hat which I'm knitting for my daughter's ballet teacher and (shhh! its a secret) Hermione's Deathly Hallows Graveyard Beret (for my daughter). I should be finished with both of those today! And then maybe a Christmas Stocking for my niece who is coming to visit us for Christmas! Here's some Pics of the hats (now all wrapped and mailed!).

Buddy modeling the "Rudolph" Hat

Wanna Join Me?

2010-11-28T20:51:00.006-05:00

The Challenge: How many hats can I knit in eight days! I'd like to get nine done Before Christmas...one for each of the guys in my family. I'm choosing pretty plain patterns mostly because the guys in my family are not fancy hat guys. I'm hoping that each one will only take about 4 hours.
Sounds like a lot of daily knitting right? Not this time of year.

This afternoon started The Eight Days of the Nutcracker. Haven't heard about that time of year? It is a bit specific to dancers and their families. Today was the "in-studio" rehearsal for the Nutcracker at my daughter's dance school. Then, a regular day of dance classes (where certain Nutcracker dances are almost always practiced). Followed by a "tech" rehearsal at the theater. (The dreaded "tech" rehearsal might be over by midnight; it is supposed to start at 6pm - it won't. There will be hours of making sure everyone knows where to be on stage for two casts - my daughter's dancing in both of them). Wednesday and Thursday bring dress rehearsals, Cast A one night and Cast B the second. Cast A's dress rehearsal will last much longer than Cast B's.Finally, show time! Friday night, Saturday afternoon and evening and Sunday afternoon. It is a long, long week. But I think I love it as much as my daughter. I'm not even a once upon a time dancer. But we've been going to Nutcrackers since she was two and she's been dancing in them since she was seven. It's a family event that starts off the holiday season. Even my son loves the Battle Scene. I never get tired of watching it. The rehearsals though get a little tedious. But there's a Starbucks nearby. Perfect for several evenings of knitting.

So what am I going to knit? First up, Rib-a-Roni. I started this in an adult size large today...we'll see how far I get this evening. Later, I will knit A Hat fit for a .... nephew or a brother-in-law. Then, of course, another Turn A Square. I think that will be my 5th Turn A Square. I love the crowns of all three of these hats. The decreases in the pattern create very beautiful crowns on these hats.
And, I promise not to buy any more yarn! I have several skeins of worsted weight yarn that I can choose from. So, Stashbustarmy, I promise not to go AWOL this week! Wish me luck!
I can't wait to see how many hats I can knit this week! Wanna join me? Take the hat challenge!

Irish Hiking Mitts - My First Pattern!

2010-11-15T08:10:00.001-05:00

Believe it or not, I have spent much of the past week designing my first knitting pattern! I am SOOO excited! Irish Hiking Mitts is now available on Ravelry as a free pattern download! It’s my holiday gift for all of you lovely knitty and yarny people who have been so encouraging over the past year!

Since I’ve never attempted designing a pattern to share before, it took a while to figure out what to try. My priorities in chosing a first project: (1) a small project and (2) something that I could knit with yarn from my stash. With the colder weather, I thought fingerless mitts would be a great place to start…something fairly simple with an interesting pattern. I love knitting cables and if you haven't tried them yet, this is an easy pattern to try! I adapted these mitts from Adrian Bizilia’s Irish Hiking Scarf…a beautiful cable pattern. I hope Adrian finds that these mitts are true to her original and lovely pattern! And ,Stashbustarmy - this project uses about 220 yards (or less) of worsted weight yarn!

Once I started knitting, it wasn’t terribly difficult to write the pattern down. The thing with mitts is that you get a chance (more or less) to test knit your pattern by working the second mitt. Hopefully, I found most of the errors when I did this! I also made a second pair to test the whole pattern. It was a little bit of a challenge to add the pattern onto Ravelry. I’m going to stick to the theory that creative people (cause that’s what I am now, right?) are not necessarily tech people. It took a while for me to figure out how to save my Word file as a PDF file. The instructions on Ravelry were great and I managed to set myself up as a designer and upload my PDF file into the Ravelry library fairly quickly.

Hope you all get a chance to make some warm and toasty Irish Hiking Mitts soon! Happy Holidays!

Ravelry!!!

2010-11-09T06:54:00.002-05:00

What do I really like about the updated Ravelry Website? Well, there’s a lot…but mostly, it’s the Pattern Search Engine – I love to click on the pattern browser and advanced search and then click on various sort features…most projects, most favorites, most queued, etc. Seems to be a close race right now between Clapotis (haven’t knitted this yet) and Fetching (recently knitted). Maybe the colder weather and upcoming holidays have everyone wanting to knit scarves and gloves. I also like to click on the browse categories on the main pattern page and then click search inside this category to find, for example, the most popular scarves. For me, I equate popular and most projects with being on the easy to moderate side. That’s generally the kind of projects l like; something that I can pick up and put down and pick up again since I don’t always have huge chunks of time to sit down and knit (wish I did though!) I could spend hours browsing patterns. Some weekend mornings, before the kids are up, I think I might be on Ravelry for a few hours! A pot of coffee, hubby has his newspapers and I have the laptop! I try to be judicious in what I queue and what I fave but sometimes that is a monumental task because…I…want…to…knit…it…all! NOW!

Catching Up!!!!

2010-11-07T08:56:00.002-05:00

Wow! It has been Forever since I Iast blogged….looks like the first day of school in fact! Yes, I’ve been busy with the kiddos and taking them here, there and everywhere. I wouldn’t have it any other way. My son has his learner’s permit and can’t wait to get his driver’s license; I will miss the time we spent together in the car. He’s been a little more talkative of late and I will miss all of that time with my wonderful son! Fortunately for me, my daughter never wants to drive, never wants to leave home….I will have my sweet baby girl’s company always….for now, anyway!

So…what’s been on my needles? By mid September, I finished @Sweatshopoflove’s Test Knit Sweater! That was a lot of fun! I learned intarsia which I had never tried before. Also, I learned reverse stockinette….seems pretty obvious doesn’t it? But I never ran across that before.

After knitting Ishbel, which I love, I’ve been yearning to knit some more shawls…first, Traveling Woman by Liz Abinante. I used Lornas Laces Shepherd Sock in the Jimmy Beans Wool September Limited Edition Color called Chocolate Mousse. Yes, it is pitiful but this beautiful shawl still needs to be blocked!

And, I’m so in love with Lornas Laces yarn, that WestKnits’ Boneyard Shawl was knitted using Shepherd Sport In Eclipse (also a Limited Edition Color). Seriously, I love Lornas Laces yarn so much and would work at Jimmy Bean’s Wool just to get more!

I wanted to start some easy-peasy projects for Holiday gift giving. First up, Fetching by Cheryl Naimath on Knitty.com. Fetching, as you all probably know, is one of the most popular projects on Ravelry. I knitted these pretty mitts while watching TV with the family one weekend. Quick, easy, pretty and a great use of yarn from my stash!

Next up was Habitat by Brooklyn Tweed aka Jared Flood. I could look at his Ravelry project page for hours so beautiful are the photographs! I used Brooklyn Tweed’s Shelter in Sweatshirt. I love how soft and squishy this hat came out. Can’t wait to make one for me!

Lastly, my Halloween KopyKat Skully Socks inspired by @mysevenkids (my7kids on Ravelry). I love the combination of green and orange and the skull and bones was an easy intarsia pattern. (already making use of skills I learned a few months ago!) I finished them just after the last Trick or Treater came to our door (and got a ton of candy as a prize for being the last). First socks that I ever knit for me! And I squeezed them into Socktober! Now, onto more quick and easy projects for the holidays!

What have you been knitting lately? Share here!

Love this Boneyard Shawl!

2010-10-06T09:35:00.000-04:00

Intarsia Update - Almost Ready for Sleeves!!!! - Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-01T11:48:00.000-04:00

Test Knitting a Sweater & Learning a New Technique

2010-08-26T12:20:00.000-04:00

Playing Show & Tell with Twitter Friend @SuzyKnits!

I'm test knitting a sweater for another Twitter Friend, Allyson of @sweatshopoflove...the Granny Bomber Jacket...Take a Look! Its adorable isn't it! So I'm learning a new for me technique...intarsia knitting. My first attempt was not coming along too well...so off I went to Knitting Help and watched the video on intarsia...several times.

I think I am starting to get the hang of it. Attempt #2 is going much better. And I'm really loving the basketweave pattern. It looks like a mess with all of the strands during the intarsia section but the reality is, the strands pull out very easily. It's moving along quick enough now that I will probably separate for the back section by Saturday. And I've only been working on Attempt #2 for a week as of tomorrow. I can even do this in the car while I'm waiting for the kiddos here and there. (School has started here in Georgia and we're trying to get the new schedules down). I'll post more progress pics soon!

Wordless Wednesday - Intarsia Revisited (Attempt #2 is Going Well!!!)

2010-08-25T13:02:00.000-04:00

Wordless Wednesday - First Attempt at Intarsia Knitting

2010-08-18T15:56:00.000-04:00

The End of Summer - Catching Up!

2010-08-16T11:34:00.000-04:00

Well, summer passed by much. much, much too quickly…between vacations, summer camps and programs and a few projects around the house, it seems like just yesterday that my kiddos finished up exams and we all looked forward to the summer ahead! And now, today is the first day of school! Can you believe it?!!!The schedule is already jammed packed with my son running on the high school cross country team and my daughter dancing several nights a week at her ballet school. I’m sure it will be crazy the first few weeks with evening cross country practices scheduled so the kids don’t have to run during the extremely hot afternoons that we’ve had these past few weeks.

Over the weekend, I sat down and tied up loose ends (quite literally) on several projects. First up, weaving loose ends on this baby afghan for my son’s cross country coach who has a two month old baby boy! Welcome Baby Mac! I used Knit Picks Swish DK in Sea Glass, a superwash yarn and this Lion Brand Yarns Baby Afghan Pattern. I never used superwash yarn before so one of the weekend’s big projects was to test wash and dry the afghan. I used a gentle cycle, cold water wash and dryed at a low temperature and the afghan retained its shape and size! Perfect yarn for a baby afghan!

Next up was blocking my July socks for our 12 Socks Project Twitalong. In July, I finished a pair of socks that I had started in April for my son. Even though his feet grew 3 WHOLE sizes this past year, they were no match for these socks! They were just huge! As always, he kindly told me how much he liked them but they simply were not wearable. A couple of times through the washer at hot temperatures changed that though…I’m still not sure what happened with my measurements but at least the socks fit him now…more or less…

I knitted these legwarmers for my ballerina daughter while she and I were in NYC for her summer dance program. The pattern is Hyde Park Legwarmers designed by Allyson of The Sweatshop of Love. I love how they turned out. All I had left was weaving in the loose ends and voila! My daughter can’t wait to wear them to her ballet class tonite!

Lastly, I finished this Cotton Smocked Top! A Twitalong with @CheekyTart and @Jbee42 . Finally! I was really worried about attaching the straps and adding the elastic but it turned out to be pretty easy. Not sure how pretty my effort looks but I’m pretty sure the top will stay put…it was a little big on my daughter before I added the elastic. All in all, this was pretty easy to knit.

And as for the other projects around the house...here’s what my powder room currently looks like: We started last Wednesday…the contractor has been busy fixing the drywall because of a wall treatment that we decided we no longer wanted. It’s moving along pretty quickly and will probably be 100% complete within the next two weeks. We are also doing a small renovation to the basement. For me, this meant going through a lot of boxes and trimming things down. ..somewhat of a time consuming project but it was great to get rid of some of the stuff that we no longer needed.

Next up on my needles…my 12 Socks August 12 Project …I’m knitting these Lacy Mock Cable Socks with a Medium Weight Blue Moon Fiber Arts Sock That Rock in a colorway called Nodding Violet. I love the colors; they are perfect violet greens, purples and blues. While I thought these would be MY socks, the colors just reminded me so much of my sister who loves to grow violets. So they are Michelle’s socks. Please don’t tell her because I think they are going to be a Christmas present.

And I’m very excited to be a test knitter for Allyson @sweatshopoflove. I’ll give you some progress updates as I go along!

Wordless Wednesday...Gone Fishing!!!

2010-07-14T08:08:00.000-04:00

What's on My Needles?

2010-07-02T00:54:00.004-04:00

Well, I guess its more like, what’s gonna be on my needles?? The plan for July is this…legwarmers for my daughter. This summer, she is going to 3 weeks of dance programs. I love these, Hyde Park Legwarmers, by @Sweatshopof Love. I don’t think my daughter will find any other ballerinas with those! Also, a baby blanket for my son’s track coach. Welcome to the World, baby Mac. I am going to knit the baby blanket found in the July Issue of Creative Knitting. Thanks @BevKnits! Hmmmm, what else? I just joined #12Socks Twitalong, a new Twitter Knitalong….I’m joining (so far) @KnittyorNice, @TreeHuggersWife and @VTKnitboy. The goal: 12 pairs of socks over the next year starting today! Who else is going to join us? This month, I am going to finish a pair of socks that I started for my son this past April. And lastly, I hope to tackle something for me! Do you know I have never finished anything for me? I have a beautiful handbag that needs felting and lining but I think I got an overdose of felting last December. Hopefully, by the time the kids go back to school, I can get that done…right now, I seem to have been bitten by the What Can I do Around the House Bug? Nothing major: swapping the guestroom with my daughter’s bedroom, changing some light fixtures, cleaning the basement and some closets and a little gardening. But I digress… for me, I will be knitting The Loop Entrelac Tank Top also by Allyson of The Sweatshop of Love. I have wanted to learn Entrelac for a while and this is such a pretty summer sweater.

Currently, I am almost done with the Cotton Bamboo Smock Top Twitalong. Binding off the main part and working on the sleeves/straps tonight. This turned out to be a very easy sweater to knit…perfect for watching TV. I think all of us in the Twitalong used Knit Picks Shine Sport Yarn …I used blush and cream. I never knitted much with cotton and was a little hesitant to do so. I was afraid ,since it was cotton, it would separate but it never did. It’s very soft and, I think, has a nice look. Can’t wait to see more pics of @Jbee42’s and @Cheekytarts’s Twitalong Smock Tops….they were both using some pretty green colors.

Happy Fourth of July everyone!

Tagged!

2010-06-26T09:16:00.008-04:00

Still working on my Cotton Bamboo Smock Top...Just joined the front and back and am now working in the round...nice, easy knitting for hanging out in the shade at the pool today. In the meantime, I got tagged by @CheekyTart & @Futterwackan to play the Eight Questions Game:

1- What's your staple meal (ie what meal do you cook most often when you can't be bothered to be adventurous)?

Hmmmm…if the question were what do you make for dinner most often when you can’t be bothered to be adventurous, I might have to say I like to make phone calls for carry-out. With two children always (or so it seems) at after school activities, carry-out is an easy habit to fall into. But lately, I’ve been on a cook ahead or 30 minute or less kick. On the table a lot recently, bow-tie pasta with olive oil, spinach, grape tomatoes and parmesan cheese. Sometimes, I add chicken. Sometimes, I sauté the spinach. Just depends on time and mood.

2- What do you want to be when you grow up?

Timely question since my son just got his learning permit and I’m sure the year ahead until he turns 16 and gets his license will pass way too quickly. Then, he will want to do all the driving and I will have significantly more free time than I now have. So what would I love to do? Open a yarn store, of course. Problems I’m facing: three new yarn stores have opened in the area in the past 12 months and, since my daughter is only 13 and dances 6-7 days per week, there is the issue of how to staff a yarn store full time.

3-What books are you reading at the moment?

Lately, my reading has had a knitting slant…mostly knitting magazines and knitting how-to books. Since we’re heading to the beach soon, I just picked up Fixer Upper by Mary Kay Andrews.

4- How do you relax?

Knitting, playing tennis with friends and enjoying a glass of wine with my husband.

5- What color are the interior walls of your home?

A lot of the main areas of my house are a neutral dark tan color…a few different shades…who knew there could be so many different names for tan?!!! My dining room is sage green. My son’s room is olive green. My daughter’s room will soon be a light shade of aqua. (Anybody have a nice shade of aqua to recommend?) The master bedroom is a medium brown.

6- What is your guiltiest pleasure?

Shhh…I love to slip a nap in every now and then while I am waiting in carpool at the end of the school day. I usually wear my sunglasses and open a magazine but I occasionally get caught….

7- What time is bedtime and getting up time?

Bedtime is around midnite. I get up between 5:30 and 7am. (We have three dogs who are early risers!!)

8- How long do you spend reading blogs (per day or per week)?

I probably spend a couple hours a day reading Twitter updates, reading Twitter Knitter friends’ blogs and getting lost on Ravelry.

I would like to tag:

@Shanknitsnyc

@Sweatshopoflove

@VCFibers

P.S. Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband! We were married 17 years ago today! I love you!

Four Hats, an Ishbel and a Twitalong

2010-06-17T21:17:00.043-04:00

I can’t believe that we are already two weeks into our summer break! We’ve just returned home from a wonderful family vacation. I knit four Turn a Square Hats by Jared Flood. A very easy knit for relaxing evenings watching movies with the family. No stress except for adjusting the size a bit. The instructions as written resulted in too large a hat for my husband and son…I hope the large one fits my father in law…I guess he will love that my daughter has a matching hat! Because the lovely Malabrigo yarn that I used for the first time yielded two hats per skein!! A quick length adjustment resulted in a nice hat for my husband and decreasing the number of stitches and shortening the length worked for my son’s and daughter’s hats. My adjustments are found here: Turn a Square for My Son

The next time I knit this hat, I’m going to follow the striping directions because it’s a very cool looking hat! Now, back to the Malabrigo merino worsted yarn - I love, love, love the softness of this yarn and its slightly felted quality. I can’t wait to knit something larger with this yarn. Definitely a sweater. For me. Maybe even an afghan.

And since I’ve last blogged, I finished my first Ishbel Shawl by Ysolda Teague. Ishbel was a huge challenge for me! It really tested my patience. I’m very thankful for that center stitch marker, letting me know that I was halfway through a row and letting me know that I was knitting a row correctly (or incorrectly as the case was several times!!) I used Shadow Tonal Lace Yarn in Queen Anne from KnitPicks.com . I love the peachy-pink color! I think if I were to start Ishbel again for the first time, I would use a fingering weight yarn. The lace weight yarn was so delicate that I lost track of stitches in counting and double checking resulting in numerous recounts.

I am most certain to tackle this project again. Probably in a fingering weight to get a heavier shawl. But before I knit another Ishbel, what am I knitting next?

I’m joining a Twitalong! So far, @Cheekytart, @Jbee42 (and hopefully @Killerlashes) and I are going to knit the Cotton Bamboo Smocked Top by Rebecca Hatcher. I’m going to knit this for my daughter using Shine Sports Yarn from KnitPicks.com in blush and cream. Who else wants to join the knitalong?!!

A Completed Ravelry Project!

2010-06-01T21:24:00.015-04:00

Well, it’s been a pretty busy month around our house…the school year ends on Thursday so there’s been lots of school projects, exams, baseball playoffs, and ballet recitals for my kiddos. For me, all of their activities means lots of driving around and waiting. Which gives me ample time to knit! No complaints here! In the beginning of May, I started Vinelle by Kristin Alexandra. She’s probably better known to fellow twitter knitters as @Voolenvine. It’s the first project that I’ve knitted using a Ravelry Designer Pattern. I really like the vine pattern on the front sides of the cardigan and I found just the right yarn in my stash to knit this sweater for my daughter:

Cascade 220 Tweed in Spring Green!
I love the flecks of red, yellow and blue that are in this yarn…originally, I bought it to make another felted handbag, but if you’ve seen my Ravelry page, you know that I’ve probably knitted enough felted handbags for a while! I found some cute flower shaped buttons...perfect for a tween! For me, this sweater had some great challenges: the vine pattern and the raglan sleeves. I don’t think I’ve ever knitted a sweater with raglan sleeves before! I loved knitting them…and I think they look great! I’m looking forward to knitting this sweater for me!

I knitted a Sweater for my husband

2010-05-26T08:36:00.012-04:00

A long time ago, when we were still dating, I knitted a sweater for my husband then boyfriend. I must say, I’m very touched that he has kept it all of these years as it never really fit him very well…the neckband was too tight, and it’s too long. I think I was running out of yarn without the possibility of getting more by the time I got to the neckband. It’s made out of really heavy worsted weight yarn… almost too heavy for even the coldest days in Maryland…we now live in Georgia where the winters are certainly too warm for my husband to wear a really heavy sweater. (He has never worn sweaters very much).

I loved the pattern that I used, from a book on Irish Fisherman sweaters that I probably purchased at the same time that I bought the yarn. With my newly re-found love of knitting, I starting to search around the house for that book. Thought I’d take a look through it to see if there was anything that I’d like to put on my project list. Problem is, I haven’t been able to find that book anywhere. And I’ve looked all over the house. Twice. I could remember exactly what the cover looks like. But not the title. And not the author. I’ve found most of my other knitting books from that era. But not that particular one. I was really, really bummed out. Until the other night, when on a whim I searched for Irish sweater knitting books on Amazon. I didn’t really think they would have it because it’s so old. I bought it almost 20 years ago. Who knew how long the book had been out at that point. But guess what? Amazon has it. New. In stock. Fishermen's Sweaters from the British Isles by Gladys Thompson arrived in the mail today! Can’t wait to get some time (carpool this afternoon maybe??) to take a look through it. Maybe I will get some inspiration for a sports weight sweater…

I'm Seeing Red!

2010-05-11T12:52:00.025-04:00

Red yarn, that is! Look at these beautiful yarns that I found at http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/. First, this beautiful Malabrigo sock yarn called, are you ready, Ravelry Red! What a great name!

Next, from Lorna's Laces, another sock yarn called, yep you guessed it, Ysolda's Red. Perfect for knitting up an Ishbel shawl which is on my project to do list!

Why the great interest in RED yarn? My niece is going to the University of Maryland next year! Yay Magpie! That means I get to knit red hats, red socks, red shawls, red sweaters, red scarves, red afghans...you get the idea!

Go Terps!

Hello!

2010-04-14T09:01:00.004-04:00

Welcome! My blog is finally up and running! I set it up at the beginning of the year when I joined Twitter. Finally decided that sometimes 140 characters isn't always enough to talk about all of the knitting projects etc that I am working on and/or planning! Please share your comments with me! Hopefully, I will overcome my blog shyness and post again soon! :)