Cowls

Ok so it is finally summer, but I also think I should start work on winter things. After all, it takes some weeks to finish them and get them photographed and up onto Etsy.

I love these cowls. They just slip over your head - easy as can be! I like to knit them in luxury yarns - this one is pure cashmere. It is my favorite, so I will not be selling it, but I will make them to order.

Painter's Palette

Beautiful Koigu. Their label says "each dye lot is an original painting" and it is so true. This is Dye Code P711, Lot 164 and it truly looks like a painting. 100% cushy merino wool bounces as you knit. I am happy that I am using a size 5 needle - the recommended size 3 was just too tight. This is much softer and prettier.

Just look at the gorgeous colors.

www.koigu.com

Progress

This was SO not a planned project, but an experiment. I've only knit a few inches more since I first it to you a week ago, but the pattern is starting to emerge.

These fair-isle-pattern-as-you-knit sock yarns are meant to be only made into the width of a sock, so I wasn't sure what would happen when I knit it into a larger circle to cover the neck. Interesting. It still makes the pattern, but it makes it into two halves - one side appears to be the dots and the other side more of the stripes alone without the little dots.

Stay tuned - I think I like it. It may end up just a finished project for me. I love these cowls - they keep the neck warm and don't untie or fall off - you don't have to keep fussing with them like the ends of a scarf.

New Image

Thank you, Allie for designing the new banner for
my shop at Etsy. Check it out and all of the new
scarves I've put up for sale.
scarfstore.etsy.com

All Work and No Playing (well, except with Belle)

This a pile of about 20 skeins - the newest additions to the yarn stash. They all need to be wound from the skeins into balls before I can figure out what to make and start knitting. (Actually I pretty much know what I am going to do with each one).

My blue scarf now almost done. The original idea did not work, so I decided to crochet around the edges to keep the stockinette stitch from rolling. I forget how delicate and pretty just a little crochet can be until I do it. Nice. This thing was actually really funky until I blocked it. It made the yarn go all soft and flow-y. Always block - well worth the time and effort. I think it is the difference between homemade and a professional-looking finished product.

One of my knit-in-the-round cowls. This is a cotton sock yarn from Italian company Lana Grossa. It is supposed to look like fair isle when it is done. (Does anyone know how they figure this out? - MAGIC - color change fair isle without color changing). Not sure if it is going to work since something for the neck is obviously bigger than a sock would be. We'll see what happens as I continue knitting on it.

Jacaranda

I thought it would be fun to show you the view from my office in downtown Los Angeles. It is May and the jacaranda trees bloom here every year at this exact time - stunning violet blue blossoms. Enjoy - they don't last long - soon they will have fallen to the ground and smashed on the streets and sidewalks like blueberry jam. So beautiful and then sad to see them go so quickly. On this morning, it wasn't particularly clear, but the next day, the winds came up, cleaned the air and you could read see the ocean, the Hollywood sign and Griffith Observatory.

The buildings are a TV/movie studio. You have seen the twin walkways and the entrance below used in shows like Numbers, CSI NY and the Riches and movies like MI and tons of commercials. It is fun to watch filming during the day. They set up early early in morning and by evening are done and gone. Those crews work hard.

Another Surprise!

Bumpy Colinette Enigma. See how the thick and thin strand is evenly spaced and it makes these really cool bumps and then, suddenly in the middle, a section of perfectly even garter stitching.

Experimenting with various yarns makes the knitting so much more fun.

This colorway is No. 71 Fire - pretty bright red and gold with a touch of pale pink and light brown. Typical of this Welsh company - unusual color combinations that just work.

I had this yarn in my stash and loved it on the skein and then when I rolled it into the yarn ball, I still liked the way it looked so much that I didn't think I could knit it. Now I don't know why I waited so long because I am madly in love with the way it is turning out.

Habu

One word.

What is it about this stuff? Lovely, unusual fibers from this Japanese company. I've used the Stainless Steel and Paper - not to mention the Cashmere. Odd, strange, weird, and yet so new and interesting to knit with and the finished product is so cool.

This is their 100% cotton nerimaki slub in baby pink. The texture is great - another simple scarf that will be a masterpiece. . . .

Let the Yarn Inspire

When I can't decide what to knit nest, I let the yarn talk to me and inspire my project. Keep it an easy garter or stockinette stitch and the fibers shine through. I love sock yarns for this reason. I always have at least one project like this going in my basket or "knitting-to-go" bag. It can be worked on anywhere and if the yarn is interesting, I think it keeps you from getting bored with more complex projects and it decreases the inventory in your stash.

This is Mosaic from Ella rae, in color 06.

So Many Projects at the Same Time

This crazy idea of just knitting two rows and changing colors is turning out great. I've already ordered yarn to make more little pin-striped scarves: black and white and blue-the colors of the season. The yarn is Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino and it is cushiony and bouncey and gives great stitch detail. I have to be careful not to make any mistakes though - they really show. Fun and quick knitting on a Saturday afternoon of movie-watching. I keep my skeins in separate plastic bags to keep them clean and to prevent tangling.

Although the pink boucle is still on the needles in this pic, the scarf is finished now. Jewel-colored Noro Hotaru in poly/cotton, but the shiny bits make it look like silk. Pretty.

This is a verigated fuzzy Louise Harding mohair with carrying black thread in it that I picked up at Stitch Cafe on one of those "I'll just drop into the shop and see what's new" trips. No idea at the time what I would do with it, but somehow the yarns speak to me and I end up with something quite lovely. It will need to be blocked and the black string "slides" as I knit, but it is a very sweet surprise.