Seaside Shawlette Blocked

Yea! The Seaside Shawlette is done! I'm very happy with how this came out. Its lovely and soft and a perfect weight for a lightweight cover when sitting in the evenings and knitting. It will also be a perfect wrap for going to a restaurant in the summer when you have summer tops on and they have the air conditioning blasting away! It folds up very nice and compact so its easy to carry along. It was easier than I first thought it would be and makes a great stay at home project. It takes a bit more concentration to keep your place in the charts. I think I will be making more shawls in the future. I used less than 1 skein of Schaefer Anne yarn in the Bay Leaf, Sage and Rosemary colorway and Wendy Johnson's pattern Seaside Shawlette. I haven't weighed the left over yarn but it feels like about half. I'm going to see if I have enough left to make socks.

Yea! My Seaside Shawlette is done!

Ok, so its not completely done, but it is bound off the needles. Its lovely. I have to find my pins for blocking. It did take me a lot longer to do that I anticipated but I had 3 long breaks while knitting it. But once I got moved and unpacked I zipped through the last chart. I really loved knitting this but I had to do it at home. Sometimes even the TV distracted me enough to make mistakes but it wasn't really that hard. I'll post again once I have it washed and blocked. Can't wait to wear it!

Shawl and Sock Update

I figured I better get an update on here. Here is a new picture of my shawl in progress. Its coming right along. I've completed Chart A and will be starting Chart B. I estimate its about 60% complete as I only do Chart B and C once where I repeated Chart A 3 times.

I'm also updating you on my Diamond Chain socks. I'm really happy with the look of the pattern. This yarn really shows it off. I've learned alot about yarn/pattern choice. I think I will save the lace patterns for smoother yarn as it really shows up better. The fuzzy yarns I'll do a simpler pattern like Wilma Beckers Waffle Stitch pattern. It make a lovely texture. On a side note while I was waiting for my car inspection to be done yesterday I pulled out these socks to pass the time. I had quite an audience in the waiting area.

Knit Olympics Shawl Update

Ok, a quick post to show my progress. It may not look like much but if you look close you can see the white string running through as the lifeline. In the last picture the string was several rows lower so I think I've done about 20 rows since the last picture. I'm going to visit Katie next week in Bosser City and will have time to work on it while everyone is in school and work so I still hope to be in Gold Medal contention. For those of you who don't know, Gold Medal is completed by the closing ceremonies.

Knit Olympics Shawlette

When Regina Dale from the Song and Dance Ranch and Howling Wolf Herbs suggested a Knit Olympics I decided it was a great idea and that I needed to use the opportunity to try a different project. I have been following Wendy Johnson's blog called Wendy Knits and watching her make shawl after shawl. When I mentioned this at a Grapevine Stitch n Bitch meeting several people told me they use shawls all the time. With that I was hooked. I dug through my stash and found a yarn I thought was suitable and then sent a message to Wendy asking her advice for which pattern to try for my first lace knit shawl and told her what yarn I was going to use. She very kindly replied back with two suggestions and I chose her Seaside Shawlette. I cast on last night during the Opening Ceremonies and by the time they were finished I have worked up to about halfway through the set up chart. It seems to be going well and I have every intention of completing it by the end of the Olympics. I am using Schaefer Anne yarn in the Bay Leaf, Sage and Rosemary colorway. This is a beautiful yarn with a lovely hand. I'm very excited. I've taken a picture of the yarn wound in a center pull ball along with the knitting so far and a picture of the pattern. I also have a close up of the knitting so far. I know it doesn't look like much right now but I am confident it will be beautiful! I will keep you posted on my progress.

Completed Crocus Toe Up Socks!

Ok, done with these socks! They are incredibly soft and comfy since they are made from 100% Alpaca fiber. I love the color pattern. I used Wilma Becker's pattern but dropped down a size on the needles to get a tighter fit since the stitch count was set for the pattern. This is my first attempt at any lace pattern and I really liked it. I may try a shawl soon since I do have several fingerling weight sock yarns in my stash. I'm trying to decide what to cast on next. I think I need a light color yarn for a change so its easier to see. I'll keep you posted.

Alpaca Crocus Toe Up Socks

Time to update everyone on the socks currently on the needle. This is lovely sock yarn, 100% Alpaca yarn and the pattern is a treat. Its by Wilma Becker from my Sock Toe Up yahoo group. I made the toe a bit more narrow rather than rounded and it feels better. I also went down a needle size as the pattern calls for specific number of stitches and I wanted the socks to be a bit more snug. I'm pretty happy with these and the stitch pattern is quite easy. It was a way to ease into lace.