soaring

After abandoning Kai-Mei from Cookie A's Sock Innovation, it seemed to me that this Cadenza wool/silk blend yarn would be perfect for the Rick pattern instead. Not sure if you can make it out in the photo, but lines of twisted rib stitches travel down and around the leg and then across the foot. The pattern is so striking in tone on tone red, that it seemed like destiny. I had to go for it. After knitting halfway down the leg of the first sock, I can tell you that it's not as complicated as I thought - at least, not so far. Oh, I have to keep an eye on what I'm doing. And it's probably best that I put it aside on a Saturday night when Gavin pours a second Rum and Coke. And just concentrate on Sidney Crosby instead. Because this is definitely not suitable for mindless or distracted knitting.

There was a little crisis in confidence when I turned the page to see the charts for the top of the foot - 32 stitch pattern across 57 rounds. Lots of focus and attention needed, but I think I'm up to it. The pattern is just incredible. I can't believe I'm knitting it! And that it's turning out just like the picture!

A local paper reports that a pair of bald eagles have started a nest a short distance from where we scattered my Mom's ashes just a few weeks ago. It's nice to think that Mom's spirit is soaring with the eagles. Happy Mother's Day.

finishedness

Done, blocked, dried and folded. I love it. The colours are really pretty, and the pattern is very striking now that it has been blocked. This yarn is a dream to knit, with lovely transitions between the colours. And not a single knot or break.

The finished blanket is 30 x 32". There's a raging debate as to what size a baby blanket should be. Some suggest the blanket be big enough for use as a bed cover as the child grows. But others say smaller is better - better for swaddling, for covering a car seat, particularly for infants. That makes sense to me, so I think 30 x 32" is great. Wouldn't a big blanket be too bulky and drag on the floor?

Clara's sundress is also finished - although the "finishedness" is a bit provisional. The dress is better with the embroidered flowers than without, but I'm still not keen on the flowers as they are now. My plan? Bring them to my friend Jane, and recruit her to redo them! She's much better at this sort of thing than I am. Note to self: Avoid patterns requiring embroidery in future.

Next? I really should be weaving in the ends of my Taiga sweater, but some how or another I cast on a sock last night. Maybe I can make a deal with myself? Weave in one end for every 4 round pattern repeat I knit.

not much going on here

More blanket. Not much else going on here. I'd love to show off finished projects. Or tell you that I've started exciting new projects. Or been somewhere. Or done something. Nope, just been working away at this little blanket.

Maybe it's an emotional wipeout? I just feel tired and lethargic. Not at all in the mood for anything terribly energetic or challenging. The laundry's not getting done. Nothing has been dusted for weeks. Can't even muster up the energy to call for a hair appointment. Just knitting on the sofa, mindlessly watching TV.

Maybe tomorrow I'll feel like starting something new?

knitting chalice lace

With a pattern that needs just 2 skeins, it's easy to calculate how big to make it. At the end of the first skein I'm halfway ... as long as I make sure I'm at the end of a repeat or in the middle. Nice to know that I can knit pretty much every yard of this beautiful yarn without worry.

The chalice lace looks complicated, but it's straightforward now that I'm a ways into it. Still, I have to keep a close eye on what row I'm working on. And I doubt I'd find my way if I were to put it aside for any length of time.

For the next couple of days I'm going to focus on this blanket. And then? Nothing new on the needles until I finish other projects. Like embroidering flowers on Clara's sundress. And weaving in ends on my Taiga sweater.

the beginnings of a blanket

I've completed a swatch for my Chalice Baby Blanket. Okay, okay, not so much a swatch but the first 30 rows, after which I decided to start again on slightly larger needles, with 2 more pattern repeats. The pattern is written for a smallish blanket - approx. 24 x 36" - but I'd like to go a bit bigger, maybe 32 x 32". That strikes me as a good "swaddling" size.

Oddly, I'm not frustrated by starting over on this one - I can see how lovely it's going to be with this hand-dyed wool from Dream In Color. Once finished, the blanket's headed to Ottawa for the Warm Hands Network's September shipment. They put the call out for baby's blankets, and I couldn't wait to cast on!

And the little sundress for Clara has been blocked. Silly me, I thought I could embroider a bunch of flowers in no time flat, and then set it up for a photo. But then my OCD set in. My first attempt was with a single strand of Louisa Harding Mulberry silk in white. Didn't like that - too thin and straggly looking. But double stranding makes it trickier to keep the petals even, untwisted and nicely rounded. I also tried a flower in a second contrasting colour. Didn't like that either - looked out of place and mismatched. I've finally got the flowering making method down now, just need to make lots more. The first few flowers have taken almost an hour, so there won't be anything quick about this. Hmmm, maybe tomorrow I'll have a photo showing it finished.

grrrrrrrrr

Ahem. Mr Fasset? Sorry, but I'm not loving your Design Line Mirage Fog colourway. The colours pooled at the cuff, then striped for a while, and then went back to pooling. And, is it just me, or is the overall effect that of a greasy rag from an auto mechanic's shop? Add to that knitting with the recommended needles ends up way too small, and what else is there to do but rip it out and start again.

Next yarn? Estelle Cadenza, in tone on tone scarlet. On the next needles size up. This yarn is a merino/silk blend, and this is the first time I've tried it. It's lovely soft - almost feels like a chenille on my fingers. Not nearly as stretchy and springy as most yarns, but knits like a dream. Except, wouldn't you know it, this yarn is pooling too! No kidding! The tone on tone part is all on one side of the sock, and on the other side, completely solid colour. It just looks odd. And I really can't continue with it like this. Just odd.

Deep breath. Maybe I should put this pattern aside for a bit and knit something else? Yes, I'll knit something else. At least until my frustration level ebbs.

Kai-Mei

Clara's little sundress is finished - ends woven in and being blocked. Photos to follow in the next day or two. So what's next? For a few weeks now I've been hankering after Sock Innovation by Cookie A. And when Gilraen featured a photo of her Kai-Mei socks on her blog, I knew I had to have it. Emergency trip to the bookstore after work yesterday!

My first thought was to knit this pattern with the Natural Dye Marigold Yellow Merino that I purchased from Indigo Moon Yarns last weekend. Because a yarn that special deserves a very special pattern. But, after sleeping on it, I decided to try it instead with a Kaffe Fasset colourway from Regia. The leg is entirely K3P3 rib, so a busier yarn might be a better choice. At the SpinRite Factory outlet sale last spring Mom bought a couple balls of this yarn - she couldn't resist the mix of teal, purple, grey and olive of Mirage Fog. But Mom wasn't a sock knitter, so the yarn sat unknit in her stash. Until now.