Monday, August 6, 2012
Friday, August 3, 2012
FO: Wendy Knits Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl
This is the second year that WendyKnits has done a shawl knit-along in her group on Ravelry, and I’ve enjoyed both of them immensely. This year, the shawl was called the Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl, and worked out to be a beautiful lacey crescent.
I do like the way that this turned out, but I do wish it were a tad bit bigger. I blocked it pretty aggressively, but it’s still smaller than I would prefer.I think that in the future, I might either use larger needles or do all of the optional extra repeats to make it bigger. I think it will look lovely with my winter coat, though!
Pattern: WendyKnits Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl
Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light
Colorway: Forestry
Needles: US5
Modifications: I added 2 extra repeats of the last two lace rows.
Beads: Silver lined clear beads
Yardage: 321 yards
Dimensions:
Ravelry Project Page Link
Want to see what everyone else has finished up this week? Head over over to Tami’s Amis FO Fridays.
I purchased the Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light on major sale quite some time ago, and have been waiting for the perfect project to use it on. This is the first time that I’ve used this yarn, and I’ve definitely enjoyed it. It feels nice as I knit it, and looks very pretty. It almost seems like it has a little bit of silk in it, but it is actually 100% merino. The color variations between a dark teal and a forest green really added some interest to the shawl without taking away from the lace pattern. I would definitely use this yarn again, although I think Madelinetosh as a whole seems to be a little overpriced at full price, so I’d wait for a sale.
I had a lot of fun working on the pattern. The crescent shaped shawls that I have worked with in the past have had a lacy border, then used short-row shaping to make the crescent shape. This pattern had a completely different construction. It was knit in lace wedges, with decreases at the ends of each wedge. This created the crescent shape while allowing a lace pattern to run up the entire shawl. It was a lot of fun to knit.
I have a fair amount of yarn (.27 grams/ 119yds) left, and I’m not entirely sure why. WendyKnits had indicated in her pattern that she used almost all of her 420 yard skein when she made her sample shawl, and my Tosh Merino Light has the same yardage. I got gauge. I repeated the last 2 rows of the lace a couple of times, but still have some left over.
The pattern was really good about explaining in each section exactly where to add extra repeats to make the shawl longer. I didn’t use these modifications, since I didn’t think I would have any yarn left over, but I might if I knit a future version of this shawl.
The pattern also gave the option of using nupps, beads, or neither. I opted for beads, because I really was not enjoying the nupps.
I do like the way that this turned out, but I do wish it were a tad bit bigger. I blocked it pretty aggressively, but it’s still smaller than I would prefer.I think that in the future, I might either use larger needles or do all of the optional extra repeats to make it bigger. I think it will look lovely with my winter coat, though!
Pattern: WendyKnits Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl
Yarn: Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light
Colorway: Forestry
Needles: US5
Modifications: I added 2 extra repeats of the last two lace rows.
Beads: Silver lined clear beads
Yardage: 321 yards
Dimensions:
Ravelry Project Page Link
Want to see what everyone else has finished up this week? Head over over to Tami’s Amis FO Fridays.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
WIP Wednesday 8/1/12
Happy August! I have no new projects to share with you, and I’m still knitting the same WIPs as last Wednesday. And the week before that. And the week before...well, you get the idea.
Anyway, I’ve finally finished the body of my Ubiquitious Kate! It seems to be a really nice size, and I can’t wait to get the ruffles on this thing so that I can actually wear it. I don’t kid myself about the fact that it’s going to take forever to do that, though- each round on the ruffle will be about a trillion* stitches.
My Honey Bunches is still moving slowly along. I am halfway through the third garter stitch section.
I seem to have a lot of yarn left so far, especially for being fairly close to the end of this shawl. I know the rows get bigger as I go, so maybe I’m underestimating exactly how much bigger they may get, but it still feels like a lot of yarn! The smaller version of the pattern (which I am using, as it calls for the amount of yarn that I have) tells you to only knit half of the lace repeat (12 rows) in the third and final lace section, but I think I may have a lot of yarn left over if I do that. I’m thinking I might knit the whole 24 row repeat, but place a lifeline at row 12 just in case I run out of yarn, so I can easily frog back and finish the last garter stitch section. What do you think?
My WendyKnits Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl and Radiance Shawl are finished, blocked, and photographed, so look for those in the next couple od FO Fridays!
Want to see what everyone else is working on? Head on over to Tami’s Amis’ Work in Progress Wednesdays.
*Okay, “trillion” may be a slight exaggeration, but not by much!
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
WIP Wednesday 7/25/12
I’ve bound off two shawls since last week! These are the Wendy Knits Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl and Radiance. As you can see, I still need to weave in ends and block, but then they’ll be done. I’m hoping to persuade the boyfriend to do an FO photoshoot this weekend, so look out for these on future FO Fridays (it’s about time I had something to share for one of those!)
I’m still knitting along on Honey Bunches (which, for some reason, I keep wanting to call Honeycomb- not sure why). This is my travelling knitting. It’s so very simple, even on the lace sections, that I can easily put it down and figure out where I left off. I’m on the third garter stitch section, so I’m getting closer to the end.
I’ve also brought the Ubiquitous Kate back out of its short hibernation, and am really enjoying working on it again. I love knitting lace, but the purl design is a fun change. With three other shawls also on the needles, I really didn’t have time to work on this one, but now that I’ve bound off two, this one is back in the mix. I’m in the middle of the final chart repeat, then I will need to pick up about a gazillion stitches for the ruffle.
What is everyone else working on this week? Head over to Tami’s Amis WIP Wednesday to find out.
I’m still knitting along on Honey Bunches (which, for some reason, I keep wanting to call Honeycomb- not sure why). This is my travelling knitting. It’s so very simple, even on the lace sections, that I can easily put it down and figure out where I left off. I’m on the third garter stitch section, so I’m getting closer to the end.
I’ve also brought the Ubiquitous Kate back out of its short hibernation, and am really enjoying working on it again. I love knitting lace, but the purl design is a fun change. With three other shawls also on the needles, I really didn’t have time to work on this one, but now that I’ve bound off two, this one is back in the mix. I’m in the middle of the final chart repeat, then I will need to pick up about a gazillion stitches for the ruffle.
What is everyone else working on this week? Head over to Tami’s Amis WIP Wednesday to find out.
Monday, July 23, 2012
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
Warning: This post contains no knitting content.
Well, it was an exciting weekend, at least.
Maddie and I went to Virginia Beach visit my parents and Mia (the family dog) this weekend. All was going well, and I was cuddling in bed on Saturday morning with my two favorite fluffballs when all of the sudden- BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Then the beeping stopped. I got up, checked to make sure that the smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors weren’t blinking red, climbed back into bed, and tried to calm down the animals.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
*Sigh.* I got out of bed, and went to go get my father. He had worked really late the night before, and was trying to sleep in. I think he figured something was low on batteries, and was trying to ignore it and go back to sleep during the non-beepy periods. By this point, it had stopped, but Mia and Maddie were getting really agitated, I was getting a headache, and it needed to be taken care of.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
We spent the next several minutes walking around the house, trying to figure out exactly which smoke detectors were going off. This was pretty difficult to do because they only beeped intermittently, and of course they wouldn’t do so when were standing close enough to an alarm to figure out which one it was coming from! The alarms had now beeped several more times, Maddie was hiding under the bed to try to get away from the awful noises, and Mia was glued to us like a shadow.
To be honest, I figured that the alarms were malfunctioning. I didn’t smell or see any smoke. Neither of the animals were upset by anything besides the beeping, and aren’t animals supposed to sense that sort of thing first?
Finally, my father decided to go check on things in the attic as a last-ditch effort. The AC unit up there definitely smelled like some sort of electrical burning, and there were burnt pieces of foil on the ground. Public Service Announcement, in case anyone cares: The average lifespan of an AC unit is 15-20 years. My parents had been living in that house 20 years, and never replaced the AC unit.
We shut off the AC immediately, of course, and called the repair guys. To their credit, they got someone out really fast. The technician declared that it would take $500 to fix the AC unit, and that’s still really only a short-term fix- the unit really does need to be replaced. Really, it’s not worth it. However, my poor parents are currently stuck without air conditioning until they can get a new unit, which should take about a week. To be honest, I’m really kind of glad that I’m back home in my nice, air-conditioned apartment!
We were so very lucky with the way that this turned out. The smoke alarms went off and alerted us that there was an issue. We were able to find the issue and neutralize it before it could turn into an actual fire. Can you imagine what would have happened if no one was home? The house could have caught on fire, and Mia might have been in it.
Morals of the Story: 1)Smoke detectors annoy the heck out of me sometimes (especially when they go off when I’m cooking and not even burning anything), but they are really important, too. 2) If your AC unit is getting up there in years, get it checked out!
Well, it was an exciting weekend, at least.
Maddie and I went to Virginia Beach visit my parents and Mia (the family dog) this weekend. All was going well, and I was cuddling in bed on Saturday morning with my two favorite fluffballs when all of the sudden- BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Then the beeping stopped. I got up, checked to make sure that the smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors weren’t blinking red, climbed back into bed, and tried to calm down the animals.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
*Sigh.* I got out of bed, and went to go get my father. He had worked really late the night before, and was trying to sleep in. I think he figured something was low on batteries, and was trying to ignore it and go back to sleep during the non-beepy periods. By this point, it had stopped, but Mia and Maddie were getting really agitated, I was getting a headache, and it needed to be taken care of.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
We spent the next several minutes walking around the house, trying to figure out exactly which smoke detectors were going off. This was pretty difficult to do because they only beeped intermittently, and of course they wouldn’t do so when were standing close enough to an alarm to figure out which one it was coming from! The alarms had now beeped several more times, Maddie was hiding under the bed to try to get away from the awful noises, and Mia was glued to us like a shadow.
To be honest, I figured that the alarms were malfunctioning. I didn’t smell or see any smoke. Neither of the animals were upset by anything besides the beeping, and aren’t animals supposed to sense that sort of thing first?
Finally, my father decided to go check on things in the attic as a last-ditch effort. The AC unit up there definitely smelled like some sort of electrical burning, and there were burnt pieces of foil on the ground. Public Service Announcement, in case anyone cares: The average lifespan of an AC unit is 15-20 years. My parents had been living in that house 20 years, and never replaced the AC unit.
We shut off the AC immediately, of course, and called the repair guys. To their credit, they got someone out really fast. The technician declared that it would take $500 to fix the AC unit, and that’s still really only a short-term fix- the unit really does need to be replaced. Really, it’s not worth it. However, my poor parents are currently stuck without air conditioning until they can get a new unit, which should take about a week. To be honest, I’m really kind of glad that I’m back home in my nice, air-conditioned apartment!
We were so very lucky with the way that this turned out. The smoke alarms went off and alerted us that there was an issue. We were able to find the issue and neutralize it before it could turn into an actual fire. Can you imagine what would have happened if no one was home? The house could have caught on fire, and Mia might have been in it.
Morals of the Story: 1)Smoke detectors annoy the heck out of me sometimes (especially when they go off when I’m cooking and not even burning anything), but they are really important, too. 2) If your AC unit is getting up there in years, get it checked out!
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
WIP Wednesday 7/18/12
I’m still working on the same three projects as I was the last two weeks, but I am almost done with two of them! I am currently in the process of binding off the Radiance Shawl. This should take quite awhile, because there are a lot of stitches at this point (over 700!). The pattern gave the option of either doing a plain bind-off or a picot bind-off- I wasn’t too impressed with the way the picots were looking, so I’m working a nice, plain, stretchy bind-off instead.
The last clue for the Wendy Knits Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl was released yesterday. Here is what my shawl looked like after last week’s clue (chart D):
I expect to be done with this shawl at some point this week, as this chart isn’t much bigger than the last one and I finished that pretty quickly. At the very latest, it will be done next week (provided that I don’t make some huge mistake and have to frog most of it!) I’ve really enjoyed working on it, as well as the sense of community in the Wendy Knits group on Ravelry during the knit-a-long, and I am sad that I am almost done.
Last but not least, work is still progressing slowly but surely on the Honey Bunches shawl. I have finished the second garter stitch section, and am working on the second lace section. I imagine that my speed on this shawl will pick up immensely once I’ve finished the other two. As you can see, Maddie is immensely proud of my work. And trying to get my attention so that I will give her more treats.
What are you working on this week? Head on over to Tami’s Amis’ Work in Progress Wednesdays to see what everyone else is working on.
The last clue for the Wendy Knits Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl was released yesterday. Here is what my shawl looked like after last week’s clue (chart D):
I expect to be done with this shawl at some point this week, as this chart isn’t much bigger than the last one and I finished that pretty quickly. At the very latest, it will be done next week (provided that I don’t make some huge mistake and have to frog most of it!) I’ve really enjoyed working on it, as well as the sense of community in the Wendy Knits group on Ravelry during the knit-a-long, and I am sad that I am almost done.
Last but not least, work is still progressing slowly but surely on the Honey Bunches shawl. I have finished the second garter stitch section, and am working on the second lace section. I imagine that my speed on this shawl will pick up immensely once I’ve finished the other two. As you can see, Maddie is immensely proud of my work. And trying to get my attention so that I will give her more treats.
What are you working on this week? Head on over to Tami’s Amis’ Work in Progress Wednesdays to see what everyone else is working on.
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
WIP Wednesday 7/11/12
This week, my knitting has been mainly focused on Radiance, Honey Bunches, and The Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl KAL 2012. (The same three projects as last week!)
I was so very close to being done with Radiance- I was on the very last knit row before the bindoff, and then disaster struck. Well, actually, disaster had struck several rows before, but I didn’t notice it until that point. It appeared that I had dropped a stitch at the end of the last lacey section and it had unravelled several more rows. I wish I had taken a picture for you, but I was too horrified to think about that, so a verbal description will have to suffice. There was a huge hole. In the middle of my shawl.
It seemed too far back to just drop that section’s stitches down, so I made the very painful decision to frog back to the problem. It really wasn’t that may rows, but they are so long that it was still a ton of stitches. To make matters worse, Malabrigo Lace does not like to unravel. It clings to itself and generally makes everything a mess.
I finally got all of my 506 stitches picked back up last night, and am finishing up the last lace section now (for the second time). Then I just have the increases, garter stitch section and the picot (I think?) bind-off.
Normally, this doesn’t happen because I am really good about counting stitches while I knit. If the stitch count is off, then I know there is something wrong almost immediately after I create the problem. However, with this many stitches, I get distracted and lose count. I think that once I get done with the lace section and the increases, I’m going to place markers every 50 stitches so that I can count more easily. I think I can manage to count to 50 without a problem, and if I get interrupted, I only have to start counting at the beginning of that section, not hundreds of stitches back.
My other WIPs are coming along much better, especially in comparison. The next chart for the Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl came out yesterday, but I haven’t had time to do much with it yet. I’ve been flying through the past several clues, finishing them up within a couple of days of when they are published (every Tuesday); however, I really want to get my Radiance off the needles so I’m working a bit less on the Summer Solstice. I still intend to get this chart finished before the next one comes out, however!
I am in the middle of the second garter-stitch section. While not on the lace sections, this makes fantastic travel knitting- it’s just knit knit knit for most of the row, with easy-peasy increases on the end.
What are you working on this week? Want to see everyone else’s WIPs? Head on over to Tami’s Amis’ WIP Wednesdays.
I was so very close to being done with Radiance- I was on the very last knit row before the bindoff, and then disaster struck. Well, actually, disaster had struck several rows before, but I didn’t notice it until that point. It appeared that I had dropped a stitch at the end of the last lacey section and it had unravelled several more rows. I wish I had taken a picture for you, but I was too horrified to think about that, so a verbal description will have to suffice. There was a huge hole. In the middle of my shawl.
It seemed too far back to just drop that section’s stitches down, so I made the very painful decision to frog back to the problem. It really wasn’t that may rows, but they are so long that it was still a ton of stitches. To make matters worse, Malabrigo Lace does not like to unravel. It clings to itself and generally makes everything a mess.
I finally got all of my 506 stitches picked back up last night, and am finishing up the last lace section now (for the second time). Then I just have the increases, garter stitch section and the picot (I think?) bind-off.
My other WIPs are coming along much better, especially in comparison. The next chart for the Summer Solstice Mystery Shawl came out yesterday, but I haven’t had time to do much with it yet. I’ve been flying through the past several clues, finishing them up within a couple of days of when they are published (every Tuesday); however, I really want to get my Radiance off the needles so I’m working a bit less on the Summer Solstice. I still intend to get this chart finished before the next one comes out, however!
I’m really enjoying working on my Honey Bunches shawlette. I love the colors of the yarn, and the pattern seems to be working well with it. Would the pattern stand out better in a solid color? Of course. However, it’s a simple enough pattern that it works just fine with the variegated yarn, and I like it.
I am in the middle of the second garter-stitch section. While not on the lace sections, this makes fantastic travel knitting- it’s just knit knit knit for most of the row, with easy-peasy increases on the end.
What are you working on this week? Want to see everyone else’s WIPs? Head on over to Tami’s Amis’ WIP Wednesdays.
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