Pattern request

C bought the pattern and requested it for JJ, and as I was working on it, I made many decisions that incurred ripping back, and punts.  The green design was all wrong, and redone. I didn't have enough raspberry color to use only that, so I blended it with "pumpkin".  

It's now nearing the finishing part, in a size that is way too big for my 8 year old.  Probably 10-12 years size.  I started it in December, and I think I have a few years to finish it.

The stripe down the front is for the button band opening.  This is called a Steek, and will be cut open to make a cardigan.  

Wool weather?

One sure way to bring on colder, winter weather... mention in a blog that it's too warm to wear wool!  So, here it goes... lately, I've been slowly knitting away on two UFO's in wool.  And I've been wondering when I would wear them... Every day we go from nighttime freezing temps to daytime 20º+ C.  

Here's my proud moment of finishing Boardwalk Vest in a colorway that I created last summer.

I've admired Pattie's Boardwalk, and then I admired the same pattern a year ago when my path crossed another woman in the Shetland Islands.  Now here's mine!  

As with all hand-dyed yarns, there are subtle differences, if not blatant, in-your-face differences... two skeins used for the body, then the third one, which was the fraternal sister of the other two, was used just as I came to the interesting mitered front detail. It worked out... I can see that the colors got a bit more bold from whatever, but I accept that.

I love it, but I couldn't model it for long---too warm!

Pattern: Boardwalk by Heidi Kirrmaier from Wool People Vol. 3

Yarn: Bare Paragon by Knit Picks, Sport,
50% Merino, 25% Bombyx, 25% Alpaca
246 yards / 100 grams

Then there's this:  Maple No. 2,  for me.  

It may get finished today, if I would just put my feet up and sew in the sleeves...

At 5,400 ft altitude. we call it High Desert...

My daughter proudly wearing her "Maple No. 1", and then finding the model at a yarn shop at a "knitting festival", Bergen, Norway.  SHOCKING!!

Pattern: Maple by Marie Wallin from Rowan 50
Yarn:  Felted Tweed DK by RowanDK
50% Merino, 25% Rayon, 25% Alpaca
191 yards / 50 grams

No more knitting

Finishing time:

I've been concentrating on this sweater in anticipation of delivery of it to my daughter, as a belated birthday gift.

It requires some assembly...

I'm making two sweaters.  Below is mine, which will take a rest while I am away.

I had yarn only for two sleeves and two bodies, so only one could be finished.

Here's the leftovers.  Modeling to follow.

...until I finish the finishing!

A busy summer

Busy with the important job of knitting!  Even though the temps are high, I somehow manage to sit with wool in my lap... and this thing just knits itself.

Can you imagine these colors?  Not me!  I rely on Rowan, Rowan yarns, models knitted up, irresistible... 

I've resisted for many years, but not this time.  

My favorite shop is Norwegian Spirit, located in the train station of Bergen, Norway.  At first I thought it was a souvenir shop (think tourists) because they had a fair amount of Dale of Norway sweaters hanging on a rack out front, but they have a great inventory of Garnstudio yarns and Rowan, and many others.  But it's the Rowan models that take your breath away... and I finally went all in. 

In May, I bought the pattern and yarn for this cardigan.  (Not without the angst of seeing three other patterns that vied for my attention.)  

The colors are nothing I could have imagined, and fair isle... each section begs to be completed just to see what surprise it has to offer!

Upon completion of the body, I realized that it would fit me! YAY!  But I wanted to gift this to my daughter, so I began a second body in her size... Norwegian knitwear is needed year round.  Mine can wait until... winter.

Ella Gordon and MORE knitwear

My first workshop was on recommendation, no, insistence from my friend that we attend, and so glad we did!  

This is Shetland Wool Week, a yearly 10-day week event that centers around the town of Lerwick, which is pretty much the only town.  (Happy, I was, that there was a TESCO around the corner...for shame, but when you need "stuff", that's the place!)  It's full of events, workshops, and happy knitters in a community of wool.  I have to catch my breath just remembering the concept!

Shetland Wool Week's Patron, this year, was Ella Gordon, a young, enthusiastic, woman, and she gave her first presentation on our second day, showing us up close a collection of hers--yes, a collection that she sometimes makes, but has bought up to preserve the history and culture of Shetland knitting. (She admitted that once she realized too late she was buying a sweater from her aunt through eBay...funny stories.)  

You could tell she admires each one.

Below is a sample that customers would use to order their own custom knitted sweater.

Lunch of Fish Cakes!  HUGE, and oh, so delicious!  Fish on a fisherman's island... Can't go wrong!

Back in the room with a view into the backyards of Lerwick.

Whalsay! What Say?

An amazing island in the Shetland Islands... and we got to experience it even before we checked in to our B&B!  And I found this.... Lovely people in knitwear, in an exhibit of amazing fair isle with stories to go along with each item.  A week here would suffice, but I only had 4 hours (in 2 2-hour sessions).  EnJOY!

Not fair isle, but I had to remark that she was wearing "Boardwalk", and so was my friend, and so this woman became my friend, and we met many times in the next days.

And then down the road and up the hill was Angela's Studio.  Saw it advertised on the bulletin board on the ferry over.  She has a creative nature, and uses lace decoration for her clothing designs.  PLUS...do you see the chest/cupboard?  Yep...lace!

Later, we were invited to a private exhibition of Shetland shawls at a private home.  It was such a feast for the eyes, I totally forgot to snap a photo...So GRACIOUS everyone was!  I can't believe how lucky we were to experience so much in our first day.

Update on Knitting

Here's the most recent progress, however, (spoiler alert) I just bound off!  Yay!  Two days to go, and I'm SOOOO close.

I don't know why it is sideways… It wasn't when I imported it...

And speaking of close, I want to let you know that no one is CLOSE to winning the prize from January 16!  You can go back there and review, but here's a refresher and hint:
When I asked for 5 things I needed to do to complete this project, two of them are (in no particular order) finish the back, and knit the front edging.  If you have trouble seeing the image, click on the photo and it should open up in an enlarged format.  If you want to see the pattern, you can probably get to it through my Ravelry page.
Ok, Marija!  It's up to you, and you have 24 hours from … NOW!
Good luck!  (There were more than 5 things, so don't worry if you can't get them all in 5!)
And go ahead and write them in comments… or email me.  I don't care if you spoil it for others.

Almost… finished, second try, second knitter...

A pullover with hood has been on my Ravelry page since last summer, and it proudly is described as C's project, not mine!  Six months later, I arrive for a visit and now it's mine.  I'm a finisher, that's for sure.  In fact, I detest unfinished projects.  Sometimes (sometimes) I don't start things because I KNOW it won't get finished…a noble life to live…but sometimes my startitis gets a grip.  But now the pullover is officially mine.  My last question to C was, "If I can't finish in 2 weeks, would you be willing to finish, by knitting the hood and assembling the pieces."  The answer was emphatic, and it didn't sound like "not finished" was an option.  So I have a schedule, that doesn't look especially realistic…
It's a beauty!

When I started, the sleeves and the bodice pattern part were completed.  I was asked to finish so I knitted merrily around and around without pattern instructions until after a few inches there was a discussion as to whether it would be big enough for Juju.
I measured this one, and I measured sweaters that are in use, and determined that no, it wouldn't fit.  Then there was further discussion about cutting it open and inserting side panels, or a front (cardigan) opening, and it all seemed too much trouble, so with great gnashing of teeth (not mine, of course) I ripped the bodice back to the garter ridge bottom border.
Of course, I used the previous model as a gauge sample, and knowing what I know about garter ridges compared to fair isle construction, I decided to increase from 150 to 180 for the color work.  And I decreased at the end of the color work.  It looks a bit…roomy… but I console myself with "better bigger".  It now is a size 6.
So here's a little challenge for all you followers:  I have a nice ball of Big Delight (DROPS) in charcoal colours (OK, I'm using a Norwegian keyboard which insists that colour should have a U in it, and I'm tired of fighting with it…).  It will be YOURS if you can tell me how much more I need to do before January 27.  (Hint: I shouldn't be sitting here blogging…)
There are five things to complete before I can leave it here and travel home.
If you email me, and don't spoil it for others in comments, I'll put your name in a hat as a prize candidate.  If you don't know my email, comment and I'll get back to you.  You have until Tuesday to give me your answers, and you can use any means available to figure it out.  I don't care if you think I can actually get this done…:)  Let's just say I have some airport and train time ahead of me this weekend.
And the prize:

It's a beauty.  I bought and used the same yarn for a wonderful scarf.

Good luck!  Have a great weekend!  Stay warm, and KNIT!

Got Gauge?

The Story of Two Mittens:

1. One mitten (on the left above), knitted, so cool! With thumb, fit perfectly... very proud.  Needed a second, but...
2. The second was knit within days of the first, yet it was bigger/wider.  Too wide. 
3. Put together, they weren't a pair, nor did I like the way the black showed through between the white stitches.  (See below)
4.  All decorated with duplicate stitch pink, they are sweet, but you'd have to have (really) big hands, especially the left hand...Now the left one above is the right one below.
5. There was teeth-gnashing, and an hour later I had (un)raveled the bigger one, on the left below.
6. I wanted to make sure the third mitten wasn't too big, so I decreased my needle size (2.5mm to 2.0mm) AND I was firmer with my yarn tension.  
7. Third one is on the right in the above picture.  But what about that wide cuff, you say?  Got me... I didn't (un)ravel the cuff from the white stripe. (Boring!!!  Who sees the cuff anyway?)
8. What I didn't expect was the length to be so diminished, so I'm 3/4 done.  Fourth Mitten is in my mind.  Dang!! I hope I can get two alike...

A newborn baby

Robert, born in Denmark a few days ago, is the nephew of my daughter!  Hmmm.  Never thought of that... her "other" family.  I found this Norwegian pattern at Jorid's webstore.  Really great patterns.  I haven't tried any of them in English, but the Norwegian patterns are basic, and best for intermediate knitters.  She specializes in animals and colors... I love her designs.

They are large for a newborn, but hopefully they can be tied on this winter, and used again next year.
What does the cow say?  Mø

P.S. Jorid's blog is on the right, called Muffins Verden (Muffin's World)

What happened to September?

Somehow, September became the shortest month of the year!  It takes a four-year-old to do that.  Her 12 hour days are cyclonic!
Much time was spent in the hot tub.  Grandpa helped her learn to use a snorkel, mask, and flippers.  I've never heard such silence!  She spent a lot of time UNDER water!!!

The sewing machine got lots of use, too.  Two crib/lap quilts were assembled.

A pullover that I knitted in 2007 returned for an updated collar.  It was "thought about" more than worked on, so it's still here needing to be tacked down.  I hope that the finished look will be this.  (It was a regular rounded neckline, with striped garter stitch.)  Ravelry link

It's a Loop-d-loop pattern.  A tricky fair isle with short rows.
I often become a "bag lady"... Used a pattern (from a previous post) to make a larger version as a satchel.  Dang... didn't take a picture of that either!  Maybe the owner will send me one!
And then there was the knitting that I carried around.  Didn't get much done...
Socks for the four-year-old, which if I don't get them in the mail soon, they won't fit.

Yes, photo is complete with cat tail...
And my Mystic Mosaic Jacket.  Ooooo... I love the colors which don't seem to reproduce well in photography.
I managed to finish both sleeves, and started the body, but yesterday I (again) thought that there seemed to be A LOT OF STITCHES.  Well, of course, there are a lot of stitches in the body of an adult knitted jacket... so yesterday, as I finished off row 10 of the chart I thought I ought to check gauge AGAIN!  The sleeves are fine... but the pattern is different on the body, (mosaic patterns), so I pulled some inches off of the needles and measured.  My calculations showed that with the number of stitches I had (which should give me a 46" diameter body, I confess---LARGE) I probably had close to 60" to wrap around me!!  I took it completely off the needles:

 Yikes!

 It was almost 60"!  Below I'm holding it out to show my friends... "Do you think it will fit?"

I spent the rest of the evening frogging and casting on.  Crazy lady... but better than discovering it later.
To my Shelridge Farms friend: I'm going to try casting on using the size SMALL, with lengths adapted for me.  WHEW!  Disaster averted, ....again and again and again and again.