2013 Washcloths - February Edition

February's washcloth is done already.  The pattern for February 2nd on my pattern-a-day calendar was Snowdrop Lace.  Since we got some snow that day, I decided it would be perfect for a washcloth.  This was made with Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Cotton, in the color CFCT025, which is a silvery grey.  I quite like this lace pattern.  Easy to memorize, simple, looks good.  Two down, fourteen to go.

Several people commented on my Facebook link to the post about January's washcloth, letting me know where in my area I could get Sugar 'n Cream yarn.  I found out about a JoAnn's Fabrics & Crafts I didn't know was nearby, and have already been to stock up on dishcloth cotton and buttons for Baby Surprise Jackets.  Thanks, commentors!

I finished the husband's gloves last Sunday, but since he's been wearing them to work everyday this week, my first chance to get a daylight picture of them will be this weekend.

Tomorrow I'll be starting a class at my LYS to knit the Golden Lion Throne Shawl (the blue and cranberry colored shawl in the pictures on the Ravelry pattern page is the one knit by an employee at my LYS).  I'm really looking forward to it.  Fancy knitting for myself!

Yarn Along - Overalls

Shortly after the Christmas knitting was done I cast on some overalls for the Lil One. I've had these in my mental queue for a long time now. The pattern is from Dale of Norway - part of set #1 in Dale booklet #135 (as far as I can figure out Dale's naming system). I made the wrap pullover from this set for my cousin's baby as my Olympic Knitting Project during the Vancouver Olympics, so I guess these overalls have been in my mental queue for almost two years now.

The yarn is the discontinued Reynolds Wash Day Wool. I stockpiled it when my LYS had it on closeout sale, but didn't get nearly enough. This has been my go-to yarn for small gauge baby items and I will be very sad when I run out. But before I do, I'm going to use it in something for my Lil One. I have plenty for the overalls, but they will likely get some extra stripes as I run out of some of the colors.

This project has taken a backseat to the current baby blanket project, but I've finished one leg and am over halfway up the second one.

The book is one I just received from my dad: Bringing Up Bebe: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman (my apologies for not knowing how to put the accents in bebe). Recently I'd both heard an interview with the author and read an excerpt of the book and was intending to find the book when my dad presented me with a copy. Hooray for parents knowing me so well! So far the book is quite good.

I'm joining Ginny's Yarn Along again this week, and I hope you'll check out more of the projects and books linked up over there!

Christmas Hat and Yarn Along

The final just-in-time-kind-of Christmas project was a hat for my husband. Back in October we were wandering around a craft store looking for things to help us with Lil One's Hallowe'en costume (and taking a few minutes to just be out in the world together because my MIL was watching Lil One). The husband saw this yarn and said, "That would be a good hat." I snatched it off the shelf and tried not to exclaim too much. The husband actually WANTED me to knit him something! and he had found yarn he would like to wear and I would like to knit!

He has this thing about authenticity. It has to be just right, or he would feel silly and never wear whatever it is. He explained later that this yarn says to him, "I am wool. I come from sheep, and I am here to keep you warm. That is all."

Knitted up into a basic, pleasingly vanilla Seaman's Cap pattern (Ravelry link), it has become his best cold weather hat. We're both really pleased with it. I believe it's the first thing I've ever successfully knit for him.

In Yarn Along news, after at least a month of reading almost nothing but children's books, Husband and I joined a bookclub, which chose The Hunger Games as our first month's book.

I read all three books in five days. E-books are dangerous -- I didn't even have to stand up in between books two and three. Book two is pictured here with the February washcloth I started today. Please check out Ginny's blog for more Yarn Along fun.

Now that all the Christmas knitting is up, next I'll wrap up the 2011 Washcloth Project, catch up on the 2012 edition, and see if I can get through January's knitting while it's still February! We get an extra day this year, so maybe I have a shot :-P

Fall Frenzy

Fall is definitely great knitting time for me. For a while now I was waiting to blog until I could take some good pictures, but it turns out that my camera is on the fritz. I thought at first that it was the rechargeable batteries being wimpy, but it isn't. Fortunately the camera is still under warranty, and the husband is a techie-guy, so that will sort itself out. Meanwhile, a picture-less update.

The LYS, Lambikin's Hideaway, had a great yarn tasting and fashion show on Hallowe'en. It was a lot of fun to spend several hours with so many knitters, checking out so many great new yarns, snacking, and learning a few new techniques. The whole staff did a great job putting on a pretty intense and seriously fun afternoon. My entries for the fashion show were the Marjorie sweater I made my mom for Christmas last year and my new Clessidra socks. The socks won the prize for difficulty/technique. I'm still very enamored of these socks and have worn them several times.

I came home with one of the $1 old magazines and a whole bunch of one of the featured yarns of day, Portland Tweed from Classic Elite Yarns in a blue jean color (#5047). This yarn is going to become the Wrap Cardigan (Ravelry link) from Contemporary Knitting by Jo Sharp, my first sweater for myself! Lambikin's will be offering a class on this sweater in early 2010, and the book comes with the class. I'm really looking forward to it.

Meanwhile, I'm still knitting on the 2009 Secret Christmas Project, although the second half is going a little more slowly than the first half. I'm also knitting some amigurumi from a book I was given for my birthday. I've almost finished a fish and have started a jackalope. I'll write more about those in a while, because there's something else that has taken most of my knitting energy recently.

More Washcloths!
I've been sick, kinda sick, recuperating, and trying not to get sick again for large portions of the last two months. Washcloths seem to be the greatest project for knitting when I don't have a lot of mental or physical energy and need something comforting to do. Also on Hallowe'en I restocked my stash of Sugar 'n Cream cotton and have been churning out washcloths at the rate of nearly one a day. I've also recently borrowed the first Mason-Dixon Knitting book from the local public library, so perhaps that has influenced me. My total tally of washcloths for the year stands at twenty. Twenty. I hope my family isn't tired of getting washcloths for Christmas yet.

Fall Yarn Acquisition

Over my two weeks of vacation -- one at Leadership School, and one truly on vacation -- I have done quite a good bit of knitting. But before I show that, I'm going to give the details of the yarn I bought in my fall yarn binge. This binge missed my LYS's fall sale by two weeks (note to self: plan a little more next year), but I was seriously low on projects going into vacation weeks, and that just couldn't be allowed.

First, the yarn for the 2009 Christmas Surprise Project:

Plymouth Yarn Encore, worsted weight, 75% acrylic, 25% wool. I needed to pick a machine-washable yarn, and on the only day I had allotted for shopping for this, there happened to be not a huge selection at the LYS. I am, however, very happy with this yarn, and probably would have chosen it even from a much larger selection. The color is named 0668 and is a wonderful heather green with lots of light orange, and little hints of blue.

I swatched for this project on Vacation Week 1, going back and forth between size 8 and size 9 needles. I forget now what I decided and Leadership School took enough of my mental energy that I neglected to write it down at the time. I believe size 8 will be what works best. I have yet to sneak satisfactory measurements for this project, so work has not yet begun in earnest. The picture may or may not show all of the yarn - I'm trying to keep even the size of the project secret. Last year's secret went very well and I'm hoping to repeat that performance.

Next, the yarn for the Guitar George Strap and for my socks:

On the left is Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy (designer's choice), approximately sock weight, and 34% hemp, 41% cotton, and 25% modal. This color of orange (named 015), is just the right shade for my brother. I'm significantly modifying a belt pattern to turn it into a guitar strap, so the amount of yarn was a bit of a stab, but I think it will work well.

One skein of this has already transformed into the beginnings of a strap. That brought me to a point where I needed more information on guitar straps and it looked like I was nearing some decision points, and it felt easier to start my socks.

On the right above, Malabrigo sock yarn, 100% Superwash Merino Wool, in color 204 "Velvet Grapes." On my monitor, this picture looks significantly darker than the yarn. I absolutely love this yarn. I spent a long time choosing it and I'm very pleased. I'm making knee socks, so I needed to buy two skeins, making them quite the most expensive socks I've ever owned, but they are definitely going to be worth it! I finished the first sock on Vacation Week 2, and am almost at the end of the calf decreases on the second sock.

Also in this fall's acquisition I bought a set of 6 Brittany double pointed needles - size 1 and 5 inches long. These are the right size for both the guitar stap and the socks, so my brohter's gift is being pushed back a little more while the socks are on the needles.

Cross stitch and more washcloths

So I just barely finished my secret cross stitch project in time. I made a wedding sampler for our friends who got married on Sunday. Absolutely everything about the whole event was gorgeous. I would have had (just barely) enough time to snap a quick picture of the finished and framed project, except that when Pat borrowed my camera for his Independence Day weekend trip, both sets of batteries got worn out, and they hadn't been recharged yet. So I'll have to wait until T&B get back from their honeymoon and open presents before I can get a picture of it. It was quite a push Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to get it done, but I made it. I've been cross stitching MUCH longer than I've been knitting, having started when I was six years old. I love it, but knitting is so much more portable and versatile.

I made more lunch hour washcloths:

The rest of the super size ball of Summer Splash Sugar 'n Cream in hmm... what's it called... a trellis pattern. There was just enough, although I'm still defying this "square" concept.


Zigzag Eyelet pattern in Key Lime Pie color, still Sugar 'n Cream.

After this year's cross stitch binge was over, I spent all of Monday's Knit Night choosing and buying yarn for my next THREE big projects: (1) This year's Mystery Christmas Project, (2) a guitar strap for my brother (probably also a Christmas present, but he knows about it, so no mystery), and (3) socks for ME! I needed to buy all this at once because for the next week I'll be at my church's Leadership School. Eight full days of driving to Wisconsin and back (carpooling = extra knitting time), and sitting in seminars and services and group meetings. Very excited for all of the learning and knitting I'll be doing. There will be some internet access there, so hopefully I'll post in more detail about each of these projects and yarns soon, but for now, here's a teaser snapshot of my knitting bag from Thursday:

Now I'm off to pack. Will I have more clothes or more yarn in my suitcase? It's a toss-up.