Itching to Start (Did I finish some things recently?)

Maybe it's the recent spate of sunny days we have had out here but I suddenly realized that I've finished a few things and can now start a few new ones. Yeah, I know. There are still projects that are old that are not yet done, but I have to admit I'm not feeling the love from those hibernating projects (WRS, Spider Mutant & Shetland Tea Shawl). I'm making some headway on Princess, on the International Shawl and Salmon Queen, but I wanted to have more projects for variety that will be active knitting. See above the center for a Niebling Tablecloth pattern I bought. It has no name in the magazine but i've heard that it might be called "Peony". If anyone knows for sure, let me know. Since I don't want to run around calling it "Tablecloth", I'm going to call it Peony for laughs. I'm knitting it on 2.5 mm needles using 2/28 NM silk from ColourMart in "Candy". I may go up another half size in needle diameter now that I'm past the first round of petals. Under that you can see that the start of Hyrna from the book "Three-Cornered and Long Shawls" using US 4 needles and the Polworth laceweight that I spun from the roving from Deep Color Studios. None of these new projects is too difficult or too long to knit so they will give me a nice feeling of accomplishment as I slog along on more long term projects like the Princess. Lastly,what is that stuff on the bottom? Well, it's not yarn. I guess you would have to call it proto-yarn. I could not resist getting some fiber from Black Bunny in spite of the fact that Stitches West is just around the corner. Curiosity about spinning something with a little mohair in it got the better of me. Besides, these colors might be nice to knit in the Summer :-) So much lace, so little time!

I've Been Tagged!

So I've been tagged by fleegle and this would be the first time I've ever been tagged. The name of this one is THE POWER OF 7. In this variation of a chain letter, I'm supposed to post the rules on my blog, tag 7 other people and notify them they have been tagged so they can also participate in answering the same question.

The question?

Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

1) I have never passed-on a chain letter. Since tagging is sort of the same, I won't be picking anyone to answer the question, but I think the question is a cool one and anyone who wants to just go ahead and post 7 facts on their blog about themselves should go ahead and do so :-)

2) I am allergic to alcohol.

3) I'm a Scorpio.

4) One of the reasons I wanted to learn how to spin was because I thought it would be ironic to be a spinster who actually knew how to spin.

5) I took two semesters of swimming and never did learn how to breathe while swimming (though I could swim the length of the pool on one breath).

6) I co-wrote a Regency Romance novel that was published by Ballentine Books when I was 20 years old.

7) I got a tattoo of a tiger on my shoulder when I turned 40.

That's it! It's much harder than you might think to come up with 7 things about yourself that have nothing to do with my knitting but I had fun reading fleegles.

Sampler Stole Finished (finally)

You have all been very patient waiting for a few pictures of the Sampler Stole now that I finally got around to blocking it so here we go :-) My lovely model is my niece who got to help me out before we left to go to Yarn Place so I could give it to them as a store sample. The first two shots are in daylight so you can see what it looks like in natural light. The rest are shot with flash. For those in the Sunnyvale area of California, Yarn Place is moving their storefront so they have everything in the store on sale ! And yes, that is a Mummy Kitty tee shirt she is wearing. Don't ask. Since I was at the shop, I got to get a look at fleegle's Spider King and her Red Lyra. The are spectacular! Her Lyra has no binding at all since the yarn she used has more elasticity than mine (mine has a very little bit of binding in the area of the arch around the flowers"). Too bad they won't let people take pictures at Stitches but I can't wait to see them hung up on display. That's it for now! Hope you are all having a great weekend :-)

Night Blocking (Sampler Stole Crawl)

I finally got around to blocking the Sampler Stole on my hands and knees using foam tiles, blocking wires and lots of pins.Bocking at night means that it will not be dry until some time tomorrow unless I get impatient and hit it with the hair dryer :-) I once again showed that I can knit an entire stole and still manage to screw up the grafting on the edging. Other than this, I think I did OK. Once I get a few shots of it off the wires, it will go to Yarn Place as a shop sample. and I can go back to knitting the Princess Shawls edging. Whew. No more stoles for awhile. I am still knitting on the "International Shawl" and there was some difficulty in and around row 105 just as fleegle predicted. Stuff just wouldn't line up as it should but I finally got through that patch and will continue on. Not the prettiest fixes but they will just have to do. My sister always warned me that patterns for knitting almosts always have errors in them but finding them while you are knitting lace really is not fun even with poor fleegle leading the way. I will try to get pictures once I make a little more headway. I am on a spinning jag so I started in on the Blue Moon merino/silk I got at Stitches West 2007. Yes, I held onto it for a year but that's nothing compared to some other things I have waiting to be spun. I plan to finish a few more things and then I hope to start a whole new slew of projects all at the same time so I can have lots and lots of variety. I have to make a decision about the two projects that are just sitting there, WRS and Shetland Tea Shawl. This weekend I'm going to pick them both up and try a few rows to see if I can kick start to finish them. It would be really nice to be able to get them done so I won't feel any guilt with new projects . Until my next post, have fun with whatever you are knitting!

Winter Is Hard on Dexterity ( I miss my cartilidge)

I am finding as I get older that Winter is not my bodys friend. Everything is stiffer on me, knitting is just a little less smooth, the joints in my fingers, hands , ankles and knees a little less responsive when I spin (snap crackle and pop) and everything wants to seize up the colder and wetter it gets. Winter doesn't lie about my age. It doesn't flatter and it has absolutely no sense of humor. Well, "feah" to you Winter! See above my spinning of the 4 ounces of Polworth and up to row 96 of the International Shawl. When the going gets tough, the tough get to knitting and spinning. Winter just reminds me that if I want to knit the good stuff, I have to get cracking. I have no idea how much yarn I got out of 4 ounces of fiber, but maybe I can break in that yarn yardage counter that my sister got me last year. And that brings up the fact that Stitches West 2008 is coming soon. Though I don't plan to buy yarn, my sister has informed me that she is more than happy to "gift" me with yarn in order to ease my agony. I have the best sister in the universe :-) Just a short post tonight as e-blogger is acting out and refusing to "spell check" anything for me. Good evening and good knitting!

You Make My Day Award

Do you know what happens when you fall asleep on top of your laptop and wake up with key imprints on your face? You end up deleting parts of your operating system, that's what :-) Now that my brother has flushed my computer and replaced it with a functional operating system, I can present a few awards to people who make my day with their wonderful blogs! Here they are, in no particular order. It's a horizontal priority list :-)


fleegleWe love our fleegle because she is so smart and she shares and her lace is very very pretty. She answers all our questions and solves our knitting problems with easily understood instructions and pictures and never laughs at us. Her solutions to knitting problems are so clever that I have the urge to fall to my knees and chant "I'm not worthy!"She is the keeper of epic knitting tales has friends other than mammals and shares even non knitting gems with us from her creative genius. I am constantly inspired by her. What more could you ask for?


missalicefaye Spectacular eye-candy! That's her blog and her knitting. This woman knits so well and so fast that I think she has a secret clone that knits while she is sleeping. Of course, knitting is not her only craft talent and I've been charmed by her original embroidery, her other lace work as well as quilting skills. Everything she does is beautiful, delicate and often winsome. All this and attending school. Heck, I'm in a coma by comparison.

Laritiza/Yorksett Arts & Crafts Not just a one trick pony, Laritza is a multi-crafter and I love to look at whatever she is working on at the time. I envy her weaving in particular but I would rather watch her do it than take up yet another additiction! She also does not give up. I mean even in the face of disaster she picks herself back up and goes at it again until she get's the result she wants and the results are always spectacular. When I dispaired over a project gone bad she helped me to find a way to turn it into something positive. She makes you want to keep on knitting :-)

Opal/The Akamai Knitter Yes folks. She really is that nice. Most of her beautiful knitting is for others, she is supportive of her knitting group and family and to all of us out here in the blog-o-sphere and she rescues animals and loves them. When I need a knitting fix, I know I can go to her blog and she has posts that will make me happy. Did I mention she is the most prolific sock knitter I've ever seen? I have total sock envy. She also knits many things that I love to look at but don't want to knit myself ! Best of both worlds :-)

Jason/Jason KnitsI love looking at Jasons' blog because he is always sharing not just his love and excitement of knitting but his love of life in general. He is truly a gentle-man. He takes wonderful photographs of places or events he's been to and you feel as if you are also there, enjoying everything. I've knit for such a long time I had forgotten what it's like to be exploring the craft for the first time. With Jason's blog, you get to feel the thrill and wonder all over again as he makes that first hat or sock or shawl. It's thrilling to see his progress and I find myself rooting for him all the time :-)

Criminy Jickets A prolific knitter with a great eye for color and patterns, he is another one of those people destined to knit socks I love to look at and will never knit myself. And he has such very nice taste in yarn. I swoon when looking at his lovely stash and enjoy his discriptions of how each yarn worked out for him. I also enjoy the fact that he often does gift-exchanges so that I can see what other knitters are finding out there. His list of finished projects is impressive!

BadCatDesigns
Super knitting and makes her own lace patterns too? What's not to like? You have to admire a woman who is so dedicated to her craft. Her patterns are beautiful and her choice of yarns outstanding. I have quite a lot of stash envy where she is concerned and it's frightening how many patterns and books on lace we have in common. Her blog is always a pleasure to read and I love watching her knitting progress.

Knitsanity/Lace Maven Lace,Lace,Lace. You know I love it and she does too! Yet another talented designer of lace as well as one who teaches, she is always knitting something wonderful. I can always depend on seeing something inspired or beautiful or clever at her blog. Of course she does other crafts I admire as well including weaving and her recent forays into crochet.

The Panopticon Just plain funny. Franklin lets fly his humor and whimsey into his blog and give me a laugh every time.The man can really write and he knits lace too :-) I also envy the fact that he has a live-in source of wool (though I think Dolores might have something to say about that).

Yarn HarlotAnother blog I read because she's funny and she knits. She knows the good the bad and the downright ugly of knitting and puts it out there for everyone to enjoy.

Thank you all for many wonderful hours of enjoyment!

Books Are Not Stash (Are they?)

My sister and I were in San Francisco today and we fell into the gravitational pull of Kinokuniya Bookstore in Japan Town. No, really. It's like a black hole but with books. Yes, I have lots of books with lace patterns in them. Most are in English. But the pictures in this one are are soooo pretty! Books don't count as stash do they? I think of them as reference materials and pretty pictures really do inspire me. I'm up to row 85 on the International Shawl but fleegle is ahead of me and "hit the wall" ie, she found an error in the pattern. She got to be the "canary in the coal mine" for the rest of us and has warned us about what we need to do to stay out of trouble on row 87. Thank you Susan! We Luv You! I will work on it more tonight. I have forced myself to do at least 5 repeats of edging whenever I pick the darned Sampler Stole up so it does proceed kicking and screaming. I have been listening to the soundtrack for "Hairspray" while I'm doing the edging so it's not all bad. As for the pictures of yarn, I did say I am allowed to buy sock yarn for my sister and I just got some lovely skeins from Black Bunny for her. I don't think my pictures do them justice. 400 yards each and they are soft and lovely wool. Though I don't knit socks myself, as a person who benefits from my sisters knitting of them I have to confess that I'm very partial to bright colors and soft but substantial yarns. This yarn has all the virtues. She promised I can have the louder pair :-) Short post with no pictures of my very boring edging. I'm not showing that sucker again until it's done! However, once I get the second set of leaves done on the International Shawl I will try to get it on longer needles so I can get you a picture. Until then, Good Knitting!

It's not all beer and skittles sweeties. (So bored with edging I could scream)

It's been awhile since you heard from me but I took a little break to catch up on my trash-novel reading and to go through my clothes closet to purge it of things I will never wear again on pain of becoming a hopelessly outdated fossil. Still, I have not been totally idle. See above, the edging that is now half way around the Sampler Stole. It would be further along if I didn't keep looking for something else to do. Did I mention that finishing a project is not always as much fun as starting one? Still, it's good discipline for me to plod on since I have decided that I only get to start back on the Princess Shawl after I finish this stole. Under this you can see one of the things I worked on to distract myself from edging Hell. I had to force myself to stop knitting on the "International Shawl" because the center is a Niebling and it's way too much fun. It's up to row 79 and you can begin to see the next set of leaves starting as well as the base of the first flowers. The ball of fiber is some Polworth that I got at Deep Color when it closed it's retail store front.I loved the colors in it and it is quite soft though not as soft as a merino. It's been wet and cold out here and that always makes me want to stay home and spin so I started in on this using my Schacht single treadle wheel. It looks pretty on the bobbin and I had never tried any of this fiber before. I think I'm just going to ply the Polworth and pray I have enough yardage to make something pretty. I only have 4 ounces of the stuff but it works up nicely and feels sturdy. I got my Estonian Lace book in the mail and it's very interesting. I feel some swatching in my future will be in order to figure out what I want to come after the Myrtle Leaf section in the International Shawl. I also got a magazine on E-bay as you see above. It has only 3 patterns in it that I wanted but it was not very expensive so I was lucky. It's the tablecloth I really fancy and I am spending a little bit of time interviewing my yarn stash for a suitable candidate. I'm going to try to resist buying lots of new fiber and yarn this year and try to knit from my stash. I hope Stitches West 2008 will be focused more on obtaining new patterns, books or tools etc. I am allowed to buy sock yarn for my sister as I'm wearing out my hand knit socks she made for me. Socks That Rock make a particularly nice sock yarn so I hope to get her some of that. Of course if I fail, I will be forced to wear a hair shirt. But at least it will be a lace patterned hair shirt :-)

Stash Enhancement and the International Shawl (4 blind women and an elephant)

Not that I need more yarn in my stash, but sometimes you just have to break down and give in to the need to have your very own version of a "Lace Yarn Store" in your home in order to adequately "Shop" from your stash for projects that catch your fancy. Other times, people just feed your addiction without realizing that you are a yarn/fiber junkie. The lovely Alpaca with a Twist "Fino" is yarn that was given to me by Millie. She let me have it when she realized she did not really fancy it for the project she had in mind. I love it and it is a great stash addition since I don't have that much in black. The Whisper is a nice merino lace weight I got at ImagiKnit in San Francisco while waiting for a friend to get a pattern. Those LYS are lethal to the pocketbook because there is no such thing as "just looking". Yes, I know it's variegated. I'm thinking something very simple to make best use of the colors shifting. Something as a break to my other projects. The cone of yarn is from ColourMart and is a 3/45 Cashmere/Silk. The color is "Japanese Maple" and it's the perfect shade of red. I just bid on E-Bay for a Niebling pattern that I want to knit in this.

Last, but not least, I got a message on Ravelry from Queer Joe asking if I had ever considered knitting with yarn from Black Bunny. Well, of course I had but had never been fortunate enough to get my hands on any of her lace weight yarns. She is consistently sold-out on her Etsy site and she also never had quite enough yardage for me in a single color-way. Joe, being the smart man he is, suggested I place an order for the color/fiber content and yardage I wanted. It was really easy and Carol at Black Bunny graciously dyed me 2 skeins of superfine alpaca in "Teal" 2,480 yds/8 ounces/skein. I am in heaven! She has such a lovely eye for the colors.

So which comes first? Chicken or Egg? When you have the yarn does it inspire you to knit a particular pattern or does the pattern come first? For me, it's more like the stars align and you suddenly have a project. Well folks, that is why I am now knitting the "International Shawl" (working title). This is a concept that was germinated over the holidays by 4 knitters with too much time on their hands :-) The gang consists of fleegle, yorksett, missalicefay and me . I can't recall who started it. It was either fleegle or yorksett, but the idea is that we all knit a shawl using lace patterns from 4 different countries/sources. E-mails flew fast and thick and so far, we sort of agreed to a Niebling center from book 2 of the "Knitted Lace Designs of the Modern Mode" books Naoko Ichida (German or Japanese depending on your view), a band of Myrtle Leaf lace from "Victorian Lace Today" by Jane Sowerby (English/British) and then we get to figure it out from there on our own from perhaps Estonian and Russian lace.

So it is that I took my beautiful Black Bunny superfine alpaca lace weight yarn and started the center for the International shawl. I have a B&W picture of the center from the book and a shot of my progress so far (row 52) I have ordered the Estonian lace book that I don't own and it will be mailed to me very soon. There is a nice blog "Estonian Lace Project" that has samples of the lace from that book knit up so people can see them in case you'd like to take a look. I'm checking out my copy of "The Gossamer Webs Design Collection" by Galina Khmeleva for ideas for the "Russian" lace.

So it's back to juggling projects for the terminally menopausal at Casa de las lacefreak. But then, that's what makes it so much fun :-)

Happy New Years to Everyone!

Legends Blocked (Another one bites the dust!)

This project was started because I joined "Spun Stitches" a Spin/Knit-a-long in June 2007. I used my single treadle Schacht wheel to spin fiber from Lisa Souza. One single in BFL and one in Merino both in her "Petroglyph" colorway, then plied them on my sisters Majacraft Rose using the lace flyer with the large core bobbins. I did this because I wanted something a little bit stronger than just plied merino. I ended up with a lace weight yarn at approx. 36 WPI that was really quite soft and had good strength. I then knit "Legends of the Shetland Seas" by Hazel Carter using 2.5 mm needles with a modified edging and finished blocking it today :-) I really do like how it came out this time. Now I can continue working on the edge for the Sampler Stole. I know I can't finish it before the end of the year, but I can at least make some headway. I can't justify starting anything new until that one is done. I have even put aside my pretty Princess edging (yes, more edging) until that one is done. So, in the nick of time, I have finished one more thing before the end of 2007. You have all been very patient and supportive and I want to wish everyone out there a Happy Holiday and a Wonderful New Year! See you all in 2008!