More Shawls than I can count

Shawls have been the order of the day with me, as I have been trying several new patterns. I'm nearly finished with my Michele's Lace, and am planning on starting on another of Julie's designs, either Kendall's Lace or Leah's Lace.  I'm also working on a First Love, and just cast on a Summer Flies. And there's a lace shawlette that might be in progress.... So both my hooks and needles are flying!

Being bicraftual definitely has an advantage, as the yarn I'm using for Summer Flies is Candy Skein's June colorway Bubblegum Ice Cream and it is VERY variegated. Now, variegated yarns dont always play well in crochet patterns, so I switched to the knit pattern, where it does not overwhelm the pattern too much.

Summer Flies
using US size 5 circular needle
Candy Skein Yummy fingering Bubblegum Ice Cream

First Love
using US hook size H
Knit Picks Palette in Mulberry

Michele's Lace
using US hook size H
Serenity Sock dyed by me (shades of blue & purple)

Linking with Tami & Ginny for WIPW & Yarn-Along

Flowers & Wraps

Finishing up my wedding flowers! Pardon the Instagram pic, I'm  trying out my birthday phone. :-) yep! Fiancé bought me a new phone for my birthday. 

I'm also working on Michele's Lace, a semi circular shawl. It has really great texture. The yarn is Serenity Sock, a wool/bamboo/nylon blend. I dyed it myself last weekend. 

Linking up with Tami & Ginny for the usual Wednesday link ups! 

Sunny Summer Shawl

I just love alliterations! Yeah, I'm a teacher like that. This week, I've slacked off quite a bit here, mainly due to a full work week-- a co-worker's on vacation, so I worked every day. (the only sadness to that is working on my birthday, which I will celebrate with my family tomorrow).

It has given me time, though, to crochet. I tested a shawl pattern for Anastacia Knits, and I wanted to have it finished to show off today.



I've also been working on some shawl pins, one of which is featured in the above photo. I haven't blocked the shawl yet, but I think it will just bring out the edging more, so the photo is a fair representation.

Linking up with Tami for FO Friday!

A Garment in 72 Hours

Even though I am both a process and a product girl when it comes to crocheting & knitting, today I'm definitely endorsing the product end of the spectrum.

Last week, after finally assembling the afghan for my parents, I felt inspired to tackle what seemed like another large project: a garment for me. Over the last 18 months, I have been challenged through various Block-A-Month crochet-a-longs, which have expanded my technique and helped me to become a more adventurous crafter. I have also gotten better at knowing what I like and don't like, and am now more than willing to frog a project if it is not suiting my needs.

3/4 length sleeves & 2 buttons

The garment that I choose to make: a crocheted cardigan. I knew this would be a good choice, because it would not take as long as a knitted cardigan (I knit a lot slower than I crochet) and also because I had just recently lamented to my sister the lack of colored cardigans in my wardrobe.

my pair of buttons are nearly an exact match to the stripe I added

The pattern I picked is a free one: Chevron Lace Cardigan. This pattern was recently brought to my attention again through Knit and Crochet Blog Week, where we were asked to think about projects that would reflect the characteristics of our chosen house. My chosen house, the House of Manatee, reflects the calmer, steady nature of crafters, and I felt like it fit my most prominent crafting personality. I further explain this here.

Back to product versus process. I enjoy crafting because it makes me feel less useless while watching television. It makes me feel productive. I also enjoy wearing the items I make. This project was definitely a product. The process was quick, meaning I had the desired item (a colored cardigan) in a few short days. I never thought it would take me so little time to make myself a sweater, and I am totally thrilled. I dyed the yarn for it simply ages ago, blogged about here.

Perfect length, perfect weight

After debating about buttons with several different people, I found the ones I wanted.

It didn't really need blocking, so I wore it on Monday. Outside in the sun, the wool was definitely a bit too heavy. But in my air-conditioned workplace, it was perfect. I had a lot of compliments on it, which calmed my worries about it being a completely awful garment.

This sweater also used up close to 700 yards of yarn, pushing my total yardage used this year over 5 miles!!! (I know I have added to my stash this year, but I still feel awesome!)

Linking with Tami to share the love of a finished sweater!

If the internet actually worked.

Of course, the internet gets super frustrating when I am home for a whole week, on and off my computer for school and crafts. Its slowness can't even be blamed on too many laptops using internet in the house because neither of my brothers are home, and my sister and I are only doing super basic stuff with our internet. All this to say that I am super sorry for no pictures today. I uploaded a few to Rav early today, but forgot to grab my WIP pics.

So, in progress this week I have Ananas Crocheted Shawlette, a LB Homespun infinity scarf (color Tulips), and yarn drying for Stephanie's Wrap. Also, a few plain hats for fall craft show stuff, but those usually get pushed to the end of the list. I am honestly trying to stash-down, and all of the projects are using stash yarn-- I even had to make do with what I had on hand so I could start working on Stephanie's Wrap. Both of the shawls are part of CSW's Support a Designer CAL, where all those participating in the CAL pick a pattern made by a member designer. A few of the participants are crocheting the same pattern, but the idea is more to get project pages attached to patterns that might not have as many projects.

My Cold Sheep progress for March was pretty good, especially with help from the CSAL. I was able to use up 2400 yards of stash. I'll admit that some of it was new yarn, but the out was greater than the in. My goal for April is to only use stash yarn, no purchases at all, and to beat my yardage total from March. Since I'm already nearing 500 and it's only April 3, I think my chances of surpassing 2400 yards used are pretty good. We shall see.

I'm linking up with Tami for WIP Wednesday and Ginny for Yarn-Along, as both share lots of yarny goodness on Wednesdays!! :-)

Working on... Mittens!!

Even though the weather's been pretty crazy here in the great Mitten, going from freezing temps to thunderstorms and flooding, I've been encouraged by several Ravelers to go ahead with my plan to make a nice pair of wooly mittens.

A lovely cuff. 

I've had several pairs in my queue for a bit, and last night I settled on Mrs. Murdock's Mittens, a very basic pattern. I really wanted a pair of wooly mittens for the cold drive to school in the morning. But the weather's been weird, and I haven't had time... You know the drill. Hemming and hawing, and not getting anything done.

But, since I did make some progress on my parents' afghan over the weekend, I felt like I could start a new project. I'm working these mittens in KnitPicks Wool of the Andes, originally bare, but dyed green by me with Kool-Aid and food coloring.

I'm still working on my Snowdrop(s) but they're already at the point where progress doesn't look like much.

Linking up with Tami for WIP Wednesday!
Being busy with teaching leaves only small amounts of time for blogging and crafting, so even though I am hopping around and checking out all the cool stuff, I don't always have time to comment. I hope you still feel the love :)

Yay! I finished something!!

I have been on a roll-- 2 weeks in a row I have something to share for FO Friday!
This is the Azzu Shawl, that might be a gift for one of my friends. I haven't decided yet.













I really like the endless stockinette sections and the eyelets, but was disappointed with the shape. I really expected it to be narrower, and I am still trying to figure out how to make that happen.

 It really needs to be blocked, but I haven't really had the time to do that yet.

The yarn was part of a recycled sweater that I dyed for a project. I had to dye more yarn at the end, in order to finish the last few rows. I also omitted a section from the pattern because I did not want the shawl to get any deeper. Pre-blocking-it is about 17" deep and 64" long. I used a size 8 circular needle, and the yarn weight is probably sport. 

Head over to Tami's to see more FOs this week!

Here you can see the color shift when I had to dye more yarn to match.

Holiday Stashdown Challenge Week 14

This week I added some finished projects to my Stashdown List, starting with a lacy-style cowl in Vanna's Choice Baby Cheery Cherry (which I bought on clearance a couple of months ago) with gold buttons that will probably be gifted to one of my aunts. The color really doesn't look baby-ish, and I bet it would be fabulous with a black or gray wool coat.

I also finished my Starlight tunisian scarf, 'By the Firelight', after working on it all afternoon yesterday. I still need to wash and block it, but it goes on my finished list, because I'll need a decent day to lay it outside to dry. I love the color, but I am not thrilled with the wool. I bought it in high school (oh my, *so* long ago, lol) when I had less experience with nice yarn. Greenfield Village (near Detroit) was the location of a field trip my senior yarn, and I bought the yarn there. It's a fun memory, but honestly, I've purchased nicer yarn since then.

On Saturday I cast on Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief in lace for my sister. She requested a triangle shaped scarf, similar to the Holden Shawlette that I made last fall. I wanted to try out a new pattern, and I'd looked at ABSK before, so I figured I should give it a shot.
The pattern is so simple! I totally love that it is simple yet pretty. Even though I hate counting, since the author is totally amazing and provided stitch counts, I'm taking advantage of them.

Brother #2, when asked in a backwards way, said that he would like a new scarf. I've made him a variety of hats, so I'm honestly not surprised that he doesn't feel like he needs another one. He decided on Ravenclaw colors (blue and silver) so now I just need to decide what pattern to use. I'll probably adapt the PoA movie version scarf into crochet- using hdc and dc stitches for speed. Because he asked for a scarf, that means I will have one less hat to make! Yay!

I'm making a bit of progress on the Smorgasbord blanket, but have not assembled any more of it yet.

I readjusted some items on my list because they seemed like too much work, especially considering my relationship with some of the people. I've reasoned that there is nothing wrong with a scarf.

FINISHED:
Starlight Tunisian Scarf- stash yarn
Divine Hat for Sister- stash yarn
Non-Felted Slippers for Godmother- stash yarn
Neon Soft Waves Cowl- stash yarn
Cheery Cherry Lace Cowl- stash yarn (this was not originally on my list, but after I made it, I realized I could make it fit)
2 hats of 9 (custom order)- stash yarn

Update from far Away!

Hey all!

This is a mass update for my Holiday Stashdown, WIP Wednesday and Stash-bashing with Tricia.
I'm away at camp for the whole week, but I did manage some progress during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics! I've been walking around all week with a ball of bulky wool, knitting needles and a pattern in my bag. Not too odd, I know-- except for the fact that I hadn't cast on anything! I've been meaning to start this slippers all week, but hadn't gotten around to it. Friday afternoon (4 pm to be more precise) I decided that I would try to knit them (even though I am a less than proficient knitter) as part of the Ravellenic Games. Listening to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, getting ready for camp and knitting some slippers-- sounded like a good idea for the afternoon.

My nearly finished slippers!

The slippers are for my godmother, who says her feet are the only thing that gets cold. The wool is KnitPicks Wool of the Andes Bulky Bare, which I then dyed. The ball of wool has been in my stash for over 6 months, waiting to be something. I love how these slippers turned out, the pattern is very clever! The second one still needs to be sewn, but I won't worry about that until I come back from camp. I also have some wool left, so I might make the cuffs longer (don't know why I didn't think of it before I bound off...)

As I'm not really here, this is all you'll get from me. I will be back on Saturday the 4th, hopefully in one piece. I'll be ready to tackle the last bit of summer, and will hopefully be energized to make more progress on my projects :)

(It's 8/5/12, and this scheduled post never posted... so I'm publishing it now)

Cast off and Cast on Again!

Over the last week, I have finished multiple projects!! As in: I cut the yarn, wove in all the ends, blocked, added buttons where needed AND took photographs. Weeeeee! I'm excited, because this doesnt usually happen.

First up is my Shallow Waters Shawl by Anastacia Zittel in Knitpicks Shadow Lace- Summer Blooms Tonal. I really loved making this pattern, as it was a simple repeat that makes a light and lacy shawl. I repeated the border rows more than necessary, but only because after 4 of them I decided I didn't want to frog back (even though I should've). My little sister is modeling, even though it is a "me" project because I wanted a pink scarf.

Isn't she adorable?

Next is my Any Which Way Lace. I used a recycled sweater that I dyed myself for this project. The yarn is soft, even though it's harder to tell in this lace pattern. I love that the button band is worked into the pattern (a row of dc at the beginning and end of the pattern)-- I will probably use this method myself next time I create a cowl. I modelled this one, though not very well.

turn sideways :)

The final FO this week is the Soft Waves ripple scarf that I mentioned on Wednesday. I finished it, added a bright yellow button, and decided it would be more suited to someone under the age of 15, rather than one of my friends. It is more of a cowl size, and it still needs a good soak in conditioner, but I will do that closer to the time of its gifting.

Sideways and psychedelic!

Even though it's not really a FO, I did get photos of my solar-dyed yarn. I feel like it might be a bit too gray, but I'm really hoping that I'll like it more once I start knitting it!

yes, turn your head sideways, again...

And tonight I will "cast on" several new projects, as part of the Ravellenic Games- a child size hat for the Hat Dash event, and a pair of fingerless gloves for the Mitten Medley. If I have time, I will enter a project or 2 in the Shawl Sailing event, as I am participating as part of Team CSW (crochet shoulder wrappers).

I also have a question, nearly unrelated: I'm trying to decide on my next afghan project (yes, for 2013) and these are the colors I want to use:

Northern Lights color palette in Vanna's Choice

I'm still not sure if I will work it in Vanna's Choice yarn (I'm leaning toward Caron Simply Soft right now). My main question is what style should my afghan be in? The first 2 options I thought of were either blocks or some variation on the ripple. Any other ideas? Votes toward one of my thoughts or the other?

Linking up with Tami today!! Be sure to head over there and see what everyone else is doing!

Something a Bit Different 3KCBWDAY5

The topic for Day 5 of KCBW is Something Different:

It's back, and this time it has the most amazing of prizes (look for the prize for "most creative post"). This was a massive success last year, and for many it was the highlight of the Blog Week, so this year you are challenged, again, to find a new way of blogging. This is an experimental blogging day to try and push your creativity in blogging to the same level that you perhaps push your creativity in the items you create. There are no rules of a topic to blog about but this post should look at a different way to present content on your blog.

On Wednesday I talked bit about something I was designing. To try something a bit different, I will simply show you the progression of my design through pictures.

And that is how I went from concept to FO in the span of several days!

Work-In-Progress Wednesday: Step One Done!

I've had my eye on this sweater for a long time. It's super simple, and all in crochet, which really appealed to me. When I finally decided that it would be on my list of projects for this year, I started planning the colors. I wanted it to look good, and I want to be sure I would wear it. So I ordered KnitPicks Bare worsted wool, knowing that I could dye the yarn to suit me.

I had this past Friday off of work, the first Friday in a while, so I made plans to dye a lot of yarn. But that color? After consulting DyeYourYarn, where the author has amazingly worked up all of last season's Pantone colors, I decided on a light blue-green color. The formula was simple, one part Lemon-Lime Kool-aid to 3 parts Berry-Blue. BUT! Blue and green are 2 of my favorite colors to dye, and I didn't have enough to dye all my yarn. Fortunately, I have a decent supply of food-coloring, and I added a few drops of blue to each batch to make up for my lack of BB KA. I also knew that it would be nearly impossible to make 3-4 skeins of yarn the exact same color, especially without re-skeining them together. So I decided to make one skein in a semi-contrasting color, and make the sweater striped.

I dyed yarn all day Friday, and am super pleased with how it turned out:





So that's my work-in-progress for today- step one of "Mary Makes a Sweater" has been completed. The next step will come as soon as I finish some of my other projects that have been languishing.

Here is one of my other WIPs:


Also, my mom made cookies:


Head on over to Tami's Amis to check out more wonderful WIPs!
I'm also linking up with Ginny's Yarn Along this week :)
My Thursday link-up is Tricia over @ Crunchy Catholic Momma.

the beginning of my 2nd Elise

WIP Wednesday! 1

WIP= work in progress

1. I have another Elise shawl on the hook. This one is in recycled wool. I dyed it myself, this time using the stovetop method.
2. Still working on that stubborn knitted vest for my brother- but I'm calling it a WIP because I actually had a chance to work on it this week.
3. I'm making lots of hats- right now I have 5+ hats that still need decoration- flowers or dinosaur spines- They are to be completed for my next craft show- November 5.

That's all for today- for more WIP Wednesdays, see Tami's Amis

Currently: On the Hook

I was so thrilled with my Spots of Sunshine Elise that when I had a spare ball of yarn in my bag this weekend, I started another. I winged the beginning a bit, but the pattern becomes habit, so it flew out off the hook.
The yarn was another hand-dyed adventure- a pink wool/cashmere sweater that I dyed with Berry-Blue and Grape Kool-Aid (inspiration here)- but upon reaching the 20th row or so, my yarn was running out ( I have a tendency to dye yarn on a whim, never making the same color twice). Luckily I still had the un-dyed collar from the sweater waiting to be unraveled hiding in my closet, so I pulled it out and kept working. But, yet again, I ran out of yarn (me, being brilliant and forgetting that crocheting always uses more yarn than knitting). Fortunately, I still had more yarn from this recycled sweater (though it wasn't dyed the same color...) and I was able to continue. So now, my second shawl is nearly done, and has 3 different colors in it: the blue/purple/pink that I started with, the original pink of the collar, and my final color of red/purple/pink.
We'll see if it needs to be over-dyed.

Dyeing adventures!

I've been on this awesome yarn dyeing kick. Kool-aid, Wilton's and some wool are all you need! :)
I bought a few sweaters a week or so ago,  both in a weird shade of green- one was kinda mottled, and the other was green with grey stripes. I knew I couldn't take them apart, but I couldn't pass them up because they were both wool. So I brought them home.
Today I decided I needed to change their color, but I knew I couldn't dye them in the microwave because they are both huge sweaters and they won't fit in my little pan in my little microwave. So, this is my first attempt at stovetop dyeing. Fortunately, my brother recently made soup, so there was a clean large stovetop kettle/pan/thingy out and stuff.
Half filled with water, 2 packets of Berry Blue Kool-aid, 1 of Lemon-lime, plus some Royal Blue Wilton's- heated up not quite to boiling. Stirring occasionally, watching for the dye to all take. So my grey/green striped legwarmers are now blue-green. (I forgot to say: I've chopped the arms off these sweaters to make quick and easy and cozy legwarmers!) (I'll dye the rest of the sweater later, and cut it up and felt it for a cool patchwork felt bag)
So that's today's adventure. Sorry I'm not feeling top notch today, so its a bit like reading word vomit...

Currently: Just started Hooking!

My Elise Shawl has finally started! I'm using a reclaimed Old Navy sweater - its an odd blend, but it yielded a massive amount of yarn that I was able to dye. I love this pattern! It's a very simple 2 row repeat, and I love how the yarn turned out. I didn't know how the yarn would come out when I dyed it because it had enough acrylic in it to keep the colors from being super vibrant.
It's coming a bit slower than I expected, but only because I've been working on more stuff for a craft show in 2 weekends.
Pictures to come soon!