Life Is Good! (I love getting gifts in the mail!)

Behold! Almost too much goodness has been coming my way lately. First fabulous Japanese Swag from fleegle with frogalicious contents that made my inner container-hoarder sing with joy. Now a fabulous feast for the senses from missalicefaye. After a long and irritating commute to get home today I was greeted by this wonderful box of happiness. Do I have to tell you that much of the chocolate goodness that you see pictured here is now residing in my tummy? Those "Happy Hippo" goodies were crunchy/creamy/chocolaty and are now a pleasant memory. The beautiful hand made bag with the delicate and whimsical embroidered bird is a lovely piece of art and is much too good for my grubby knitting tools. I'm going to put my remaining balls of Cobweb weight Shetland Yarn from Lacis in it for safe-keeping. If all this bounty was not enough, I now have a cone of Habu which is a combination of Silk and Stainless Steel. It's just beautiful and I may have to break down and use it for a doily even though I usually don't do doilys. So many beautiful things to see and to make and to share. Life really is very good :-) Thank you missalicefaye!

More Inspiration (And Progress on Wedding Ring Shawl)

How can she buy more books and patterns when she knits so damn slow? It's a good question. One I have no good answer for. But I figure that ambition is a good thing. You have to dream big if you are going to knit lace. When I read all the great blogs for everyone out there knitting, I figure we deserve to have what we want and need to express ourselves. Heck, I'm on the wait list for the Princess Shawl too so I continue to slog on to do the border for the Wedding Ring Shawl. I'm about half way through the first border chart (there are two) and it's getting more interesting now, less "dead" spaces where there is nothing but endless purl stitches (gag). Seeing missalicefay's beautiful Spring Shawl made me want that pattern too and laritiza is doing the Hyrna Herborgar shawl so I had to get the Three-Cornered & Long Shawls book as well. They are such great inspiration. So I will let these patterns and books "marinate" in my little pea brain and maybe, just maybe, something will spring forth. Just so long as it doesn't spring forth until I actually finish something first! Good Knitting!

Package From Japan (How did she know about my secret fetish?)

I just had to post these pictures of a package that was sent to me by fleegle from Japan for everyone else to enjoy. How did she know I have a fetish for bags of all kinds and for needlework stuff? Not to mention how much I love getting packages in the mail. I guess that qualifies as a fetish all on it's own. Packages in the mail so often are just utilitarian stuff I or my sister have purchased, yet I still feel like I'm getting a gift. So nice that this time the box actually is a gift! The cat bag and rabbit bag will be perfect for those silk roving's I have small amounts of and the fish coin-purse-fob is now attached to the inside of my purse with emergency money in it. The green/frog tin box is for pencils but I think I will put my stitch markers and cable needles in there. It's multi level and so has tons of uses. The shell/frog pin cushion will be great for my silk ribbon embroidery needles when I make small projects and I am saving the plastic "ring markers" for a special project. The frog bag now holds my tape measure collection and the little purse/tapestry needle hanging thing is on my office cork board along with the card. The little sample of yarn and the ring markers were sent to me earlier but I have not had a chance to swatch with it yet. I love everything! Thank You Susan!

Legends Of The Shetland Seas (center done, on to the border)

I've completed the center for the Legends Stole and I'm now going to set it aside for awhile while I try to finish the border for the Sampler Stole. I'm a third of the way done with the second border and I really want to get this thing done so I can start another lace project. So, hard as it is for me to do it, I will try to focus my attention to only three things. Sampler, Boundary Waters edging and WRS. Spun Stitches will just have to wait! I have also posted a shot an additional ball of yarn I bought when I went back to Lacis this last Saturday. It's a two ply cobweb and it would have been easier to knit with (no twisting back on itself) for the WRS but it's a bit heavier than my singles so no regrets. For those who might be interested, Lacis now has a lace knitting group that gets together the first Saturday of the month. They met for the first time this month and, predictably, I was late. I don't usually join actual groups because I have so very little free time and it's not fair to those in the group if you come late or don't show up so I won't try to join them though they all were very nice people who knit some amazing lace. If you are interested, go to the side bar of my blog and check out their forum. Still drooling over my new book and I pulled out my volumes of modern lace knitting and I'm waiting for an additional book from Schoolhouse Press to come. I bet you know which one but I'll post it when it gets here. Good Knitting!

Do You Want To Torture Yourself? (Knitted Lace Designs Of The "Modern" Mode Book 1 and Knitting Lace)

Years ago I bought a copy of "Knitting Lace" from Lacis in Berkeley which is in Japanese. It had pictures and great charts and I guess if I had really sat down I could have figured out and translated a "legend" so I could knit from those charts. I never did it but I loved the pretty book so much I kept it and just drooled from time to time. I have a few books on what is apparently referred to as "modern lace knitting" and have never knit from them. I like to keep reference books because there are times where everything comes together and I suddenly start to actually knit from them. That's what happened when I bought Sharon Millers "Heirloom Knitting" book. I had it for well over a year before the light bulb went "on". Well, now Lacis has published an additional book and they have translated the "legend" for the stitches. I could actually now knit these patterns if I'm crazy enough to want to do it. I have to say that these are very very tempting but I'd have to start small. I will look at them, drool more and try to finish things before I start more. I have three things that have potential to actually be done. the "Dragone" shawl must be next in line for my niece, I am waiting for my copy of Sharon Millers "Spring Shawl" to come in the mail but I won't start that until the Wedding Ring Shawl is done, so maybe a little something from one of these books? Hmmmm. I have to go knit now.

Clarity And a Universe of Supportive and Wonderful People (That Would Be All of YOU!)

I want to thank everyone who responded to my post about the confusion over pictures of a really very lovely label that originally held spinning fiber from Widdershin Woolworks. I was very glad that that no one felt ill towards me for this mishap since I would never want to use someones artwork without permission, even by mistake. Since I bought this fiber so very long ago, "Just call me Methuselah", there would have been no way I could have legitimately gotten permission to use this art if indeed I had been using the label as my own, and I think it it was actually quite brave of the person who alerted me to this possible issue. I believe she was trying to be sure the artist and friend was protected and I admire that greatly.

I have since received two e-mails. One from the person who first approached me with a very nice letter indicating that she was now more clear on what had happened and hoped I had not been inconvenienced. She was very gracious. I also received a delightful e-mail from the original artist, Tenzin Nyikel (Michelle Mueller) who is now living in Dharamsala as a Tibetan Buddhist Nun working with orphans. Both she and her friend enjoy spinning and knitting and both sound like very lovely people. All's well that ends well. I hope to post some progress soon . Thank you again for all the great support. You all are wonderful people, but then I would hope you all knew that! Good Evening.

I Must Apologize! (Confusion about "Lable")

I am posting this to both clarify and apologize for any misunderstanding that people may have had about pictures I posted recently. For those of you who have seen the green yarn that I spun in lace weight from fiber I purchased years ago from Widdershin Woolworks. When I spun some of this yarn for missalicefaye and then wrapped the belly band around the finished yarn, she posted it as a pretty photograph on her blog. I've also posted pictures of the belly band by itself and with the fiber in it on my blog. I have received a kind message from someone who has seen these photographs and it appears that some people believe I am using this artwork as my own label.


Please Please Please! I had no intention of implying this is my label and had no idea that anyone would think that. I am hoping to contact the original artist in order to apologize for my grave error and am posting this to clarify. In future, I will not be posting labels as I am very concerned about what has happened. If anyone else knows how I might contact the original artist to apologize I would appreciate that help.

I hope I can correct this mistake and I appreciate your patience with me and my errors.

Beaded Purse (Just for Laritiza)

Because Laritza is asking about my past knitting with beads, I am making a short post even though it's not lace. I have purchased both patterns and books on knitting lace bags and made perhaps 3 total before stopping. I may do more in the future but lace is more fun. You can use needles in US 000 (the smallest in circular needles I could find) or US 0000 and smaller in straight needles. If you really have a need to go look, here is a little list of places to get stuff for this madness!

Swallow Hill Creations

Arhyonel Beadworks and Restorations

Barbs Beaded Bags

Purse Paradise

Lacis

Happy Knitting!

Lacis (AKA Lace Mecca)

I know, I know. I said I was going to try to knit from my stash. I really had decided not to buy more yarn. I have started to actually list all my lace weight yarn and it's a daunting amount. But I have been going to Lacis in Berkeley for years and years. Sometimes for tatting supplies, sometimes for knitting supplies, sometimes for Silk Ribbon Embroidery or Beaded Purse supplies. You name it, they usually have it. I went only to order a book, a very very nice lace knitting book that is in Japanese but has a legend in English for the chart symbols. It will be coming in next week and they will mail it to me. While there, I couldn't help but notice that the shop is now stocking more lace weight yarns and I found a lace book I don't already have and some quite lovely variegated lace weight wool yarn that I am not familiar with. It's called "Harmony" from a manufacturer named Jojoland (880 yds/50g ball) and according to the label is made in China.I know I'm weak but as vices go this one is pretty harmless:-) I bought enough for a shawl and will put it with all the other yarn while I try to finish something. The book is one with knitted lace doilies in it and I think some of the patterns can be adjusted to make shawls rather than doilies. I've started the opposite border for the Shetland Sampler Stole and will post pictures once I have something more to look at. I am also posting a picture of the "Legends" shawl so you can see the color shift in the work. If you look at my ball of yarn, you will see that I have replaced the toilet paper core with an empty pill bottle which works very well so far. I also wanted to put in a good word for a product my sister bought recently. I'd read about it in other blogs but never considered getting any. It's called "Highlighter Tape" and my sister bought it at "Knit Foundry". You can see it on one of the charts I've enlarged and I really like it because you can see to the row below the one you are working on if you are wondering if there was an error in the previous row. Many times an error such as a missed yarn over, can just be corrected by picking up a strand from the row below. It beats the heck out of peeling a post-it note up to look underneath! Short post tonight. Tomorrow is July 4th and I will be off to see my brother Herman and his family. Happy 4th!

Sampler Stole & Legends of the Shetland Seas (Progress of a Sort)

Though I have not touched my Wedding Ring Shawl of late (I just sit at my computer and admire missalicefaye's shawl instead) I have not been totally idle. I have been doing some spinning but have stopped for the time being so I will have more time to knit. Since some madness seized me and I joined the "Spun Stitches" spin/knit along, I have started yet another stole. But these stoles go quickly as you can see from the progress on the "Sampler Stole" by Hazel Carter. At the top of the page you can see the first repeat of "Legends of the Shetland Seas". Yet another stole by Hazel Carter. I am knitting the Legend Stole out of hand spun yarn I made from Lisa Souza fibers. I plied BFL with Merino in the "Petroglyph" colorway and got a yarn that ended up being 36 WPI. I'm using US 2 needles to knit it and the colors are very earthy and quite subtle. I did not skein the yarn but wound it straight from the bobbin with a ball winder. I put a toilet paper roll that I had cut down to fit over the core of the ball winder so that my yarn will not get all messed up as I use it. If I left the ball alone, it would eventually block the yarn, but I don't have that much over twist in my plied yarn so it's not difficult to knit with and the stole will have to be blocked anyway so what the heck! As for the "Sampler Stole' I have completed the 162 row border and will now pick up the reserved stitches at the other end and do it all over again. It goes very quickly and I really want to get this done so I can give it to Yarn Place and then focus on my other shawls. I feel a little guilty about not working more on the WRS but I still hope to work more on it this weekend. I hope everyone out there is having fun knitting. I know I am. Have a Good Evening!

Waiting To Become (That's What Yarn Is)

Two skeins of 70/30 Merino/Silk spun at an average of 30-32 WPI. I say average because It's not consistant in size but I think missalicefaye already understands that my spinning is not perfect so she may be able to come up with something to use this yarn for all the same. One skein is about 750 yds the other about 647 yds for a total of 1,397 yds (I counted off with the niddy noddy so I hope that's right). If it's not enough and you need more, missalicefaye, I am happy to spin up more since I have a whole bunch of that fiber left. I will be sending it off soon so be on the look-out for it. Now I can go back to knitting a little bit since I got my Ya Ya's Out :-)

Brain on Auto-Pilot (Can't walk and chew gum but can still spin!)

What do you do when your brain takes a hike? If you are so unfortunate as to be me, you spin. Why? Because at least at the end of the day, you still have something to show for it even if you can barely get coherent sentences out of your mouth! It has been very warm out here and I had to take a break from knitting. I am praying this stuff comes out nice because it's going to missalicefaye. For those who spin out there, I imagine your goals for spinning are very individual. Some go for the unique, some spin for fun, many are obsessed with making sock yarns and some to get a decent lace weight yarn like me. The yarn form Mountain Pines was not 100% even but it still made a very pretty shawl. I hope it will pass muster. We shall see!

Bringing The Pretty /Wrapped in Comfort

Just got a new book in the mail. This one is by Alison Jeppson Hyde and is titled "Wrapped in Comfort" She has some lovely circular shawls as well as scarf patterns using larger sized needles (US 9 or US 10 on average) and the shawls are very graceful and pretty. They are designed so they will stay on the shoulders and the instructions are both written and charted for those who have a preference. The patterns are graded from beginner lace to experienced and most all the patterns have a "story" attached to them explaining how they came to be. Though I'm currently knitting on smaller needles, these pattern are very appealing and I'm guessing the larger gage would make the knitting go pretty quickly. I just have to go look at my stash. I'm going to refrain from buying more yarn for now and "shop" from my stash for yarns for projects instead as suggested on the podcast "Stash and Burn" (see sidebar). Besides. I'm spinning yarn too. I almost have one bobbin filled with a single in the green merino/silk. It's not too bad so far. Let's hope I have developed the patience to ply the way I should.

You Must Go Look! (missalicefaye heads for the finish line)

You have to go look at missalicefaye. She is almost done with her Wedding Ring Shawl and it is such an awesome thing to watch as she reaches for the finish line. She just has to graft the lace edging and then she can wash/block. I have a long way to go before I get to that point and a lot of distractions. Check her blog out!