Fiber Friday

So happy to be blogging again!

I haven't done much with fiber lately but I have some yarn projects queued up for 2017.

The Lex Shawl from a Quince & Co

I purchased a booklet of shawls last year and it included this lovely pattern. I received some beautiful blue yarn for Christmas that I hope will become this shawl!

Blanche from YOTH yarns

I started this sweater in Brooklyn Tweed yarn, colorway fern. I think it will be a nice addition to my post pregnancy wardrobe and it is fairly straightforward. I haven't done much seaming so it will be a good challenge.

Lucy Hats from Quince & Co

I have the exact yarn shown in this photo so I think I will make this hat. I love having a slouchy hat to cover up bed head in the winter. Plus, it should go faster than the other projects, right?

Project Peace Cowl

So I didn't finish this in December, but I'm enjoying the project so I hope to finally nish it up this year. I am using some YOTH yarn from a previously frogged project and would love to actually wear this yarn, since I purchased it 4 years ago.

I have a few other WIPs:

1. Onward Shawl
2. Ribbed Blanket
3. Featherweight Cardigan (which I may have to frog)

Here's to hoping 2017 has a few more finished projects so I can enjoy the wearing of these beautiful yarns!

Fiber Friday

This week I finished my Terra Shawl and I love it so much!

I had bought this yarn for a different shawl and got about 1/3 of the way through when I realized that that yarn was too dark to showcase the texture. So I ripped it out and found the Terra Shawl. I only worked on it during movie night for the most part, but once I hit the lace section, I couldn't put it down.

I'm currently working on fixing up my Featherweight Cardigan. I started this around Christmas and plowed through but when I got to the sleeves, I must've grabbed a different brand of needle and there is a noticeable line where I switched needles. The sleeves were really bugging me so I decided to rip back. I was able to just rip back the sleeve section and get the stitches back onto the correct needles. Phew! I was fully prepared to tear the whole thing out and start new, but I'm very grateful it didn't come to that!

I also decided to take stock of my WIPs and drew up a chart in my bullet journal. It was so satisfying to finished the Terra shawl and mark it off as complete! I also cast on the Onward shawl which was the original plan for the Tosh yarn above. This time i used some Berocco Ultra Alpac I received from someone. The color is REALLY hard to capture on the camera, but it is a dusty green color and since it is a light color and fairly solid, the pattern seems to be showing up wonderfully! I've been whizzing through this pattern since it's a new cast on and the repeats are easy enough to memorize.

The color here is fairly similar to actual color.

Do you keep track of WIPs? One year I did a stellar job of logging via ravelry.com but find that it's easier to grab my journal than log onto my computer. Happy Fiber Friday!

fiber friday (delayed for revisions)

This will be part one because I am 6 rows from finishing my guernsey shawl! This has been a fun knit and I'm curious to see how blocking goes. The center increases were new for me and I'm a little unsure if the tension, but only time will tell. Edit: I delayed posting this because I was determined to finished! It's done!

I have already dreamed of wearing this with at least 4 different outfits! A major increase in progress happened after I found this beautiful ceramic bowl from my mother in law. I decided it would be a great place for my knitting to live so that it would be both decorative and practical for storage. This quickly became "at home" knitting since it felt complicated but by now I can read the repeats just from the previous row! Edit: I finished at midnight! I got it all set and blocking so when I woke up, it was ready to wear! LOVE IT! Much less bulky than I imagines, which is nice since it is textured.

I'm also about to start clue 2 of My mystery shawl! I'm so glad to be back in the fiber world. It is my sole source of relaxation these days. Edit: I woke up early and finished clue 1 so I could start clue 2! Loving the lace pattern so far. Hoping to stay up to speed on this project so with each new clue I can keep plugging away!

In the sewing world I purchased a new pattern! I've read through it and am totally pumped! Now I just need to get  fabric and interfacing. I will probably take my Quince&Co yarn with me so that I can be sure to have some coordinating handmade items. Handmade wardrobe seemed so far fetched when I started but now I'm finding it fun motivation to keep up with my creative dreams :)

fiber friday

I'm making tons of progress on my Guernsey Triangle Shawl. I love this project, even though I had to tear out a few rows. I feel good about my choice to go back and fix a few tiny things because it looks so nice now. I'm close to finishing and hope the rain will pause for long enough to get some good photos outside.

Also, I joined Helen Stewart's Mystery Knit Along! Many factors in my choice:

1. I love her percentage patterns, easy to follow and I always feel accomplished!
2. I am ready for a new pattern and shawl not that the Guernsey is close to done.
3. My dear friend is going to knit it as well so we will have another reason to check in on each other and chat knitting! I love the idea of accountability to be working on it steadily.
4. It means I get to go yarn shopping with my mom (love this!)
5. I feel confident in my skills to try this type of project. When I told someone about it they asked if i was nervous there would be a stitch that I didn't know. I love that I feel like I have the ability to work through new stitches and try something new!
6. I love Helen's patterns, they are beautiful

I'm off to the yarn shop this weekend but to prepare I assessed my current stash of shawls to look for colors I don't have much of. I'm leaning toward coral, pinkish, orange since I have a lot of blues, greens and grey in my collection.

I'm also using this cool tool from Quince & Co Yarns so compare colors online. I'd love to use their yarn for this and while I'm not sure if that will work out, it's fun to play with their colors.

I also want to dive back into some sewing. I love my new mustard yellow dress and think that a long weekend is the perfect time to get out the sewing machine! Happy weekend!

fiber friday

So many projects to share! We're going bullet points today:

Knitting

• Blocking my Whispering Pines shawl, yippee!!

• Using Brooklyn Tweed Shelter in Almanac and Soot I started the Glebe Wrap as a gift for my Mother in-law:

• I am making progress on my Guernsey Triangle Shawl in Brooklyn Tweed Loft - Fossil

• Updating my Ravelry Project Page - it's a fun way to see how much I've been working on!

Sewing

• I've cut the pieces and am prepping to start sewing this top from Purlbee. I'm using a charcoal linen which should go with all my new shawls!

• I've been ironing freezer paper and cutting little triangles to join the Jen Kingwell Quilt Along. I'm making Midnight at the Oasis  - at least hoping to :)

fiber fridays

Fiber Fridays are back!

Hopefully they are back for a while, because that will mean I'm actually making and working on projects. I took a little break over Christmas. I think I got worn down by the very full year of knitting. I'm hoping to do a little numbers post about the projects I completed last year. Stay tuned!

Currently I am working on three shawls and a cowl. Progress is not much on any of them, though the cowl will likely be finished soon.

Lightweight Cowl

Yarn: Quince & Co Chickadee
Color: Chanterelle
Pattern: Girlfriend Cowls with slight adaptation

This was meant to be a fun and easy knit. Success! I've not worked on it very many times and have made great progress during each session due to the simplicity of the tweed stitch. This is also small enough and simple enough that I just carry it in my bag without accouterments and a pattern. A round of knit then a round of k1 sly with yarn in front and repeat! I'm excited to wear this as the color is feels neutral but will add variation to my current wardrobe favorites, which are mostly shades gray.

Cozy Shawl

Yarn: Bumblebirch Fingering
Color: Drizzle
Pattern: Whispering Pines

I'd love to get back to working on this shawl because it's a fun knit and it has a subtle detailing that isn't terribly difficult. I can't wait to get to the edging as I think it will be an interesting pattern. This one is for me, and it will be fun to wear, as I don't have any grey cowls or shawls!

Beaded Shawl

Yarn: YOTH Yarn Little Brother
Color: Thyme (not available on website)
Pattern: Jana by Veronica Jobe

The shawl is meant to be a gift for someone. It is my first shawl knit end to end and has inspired me to look at more patterns in this style. The beading isn't hard but to get set up and ready to knit is not inspiring me. It takes more concentration than other projects (lots of seed stitch) and a flat surface to rest the beads on. Since I am not currently finding more than 15 consecutive (distraction-free) minutes to work on projects, this one has been hiding in a project bag. Perhaps the upcoming long weekend will allow me an opportuniity to resist this shawl. I'm nearing the center of the shawl and can soon start the decreases!

list no. 7 - gratitude

today i'm thankful for...

1. leftover chestnut praline latte that can be reheated

2. multiple knitting projects

3. layers upon layers of quilts

4. blank journaling pages

5. colorful pens and writing tools

6. cold quiet mornings

7. fresh laundry

8. a cozy hooded sweatshirt

9. lists

10. creative outlets

What little things are you thankful for today?

*the idea for this post came from here and is part of the 30 Days Of Lists Project

knitting as art

The other morning I was adjusting a small wall quilt the other day and I started thinking about how much I love to be able to display my sewing. A lot of my sewing is practical and by nature is out and used daily (pillow cases, kitchen towels, quilts, etc). That got me thinking about my knitting.

Sure, I am regularly found with a scarf, shawl or cowl around my neck. This is a great way to display my knitting, but what about the rest of it? The pieces that are not in current rotation? The shawls that have lace panels are beautiful and a lot of work and I wanted a way to display them as art pieces, so that I can continually be inspired by what I've done. 

After realizing a "shawl wall" wasn't very practical if I wanted to be able to wear anything from the display, I decided to try a quilt ladder, only this one would hold knitting projects.**

I used this tutorial because it seemed affordable, simple and matched some of the furniture styles in our house already. I can also disassemble it if needed. Mine is about 5 feet tall and then it leans about 4-6 inches from the wall. I haven't decided if I want to paint it or stain it but for now we're enjoying the natural wood tones. After arranging things over and over again I realized that i've never knit anything in yellow! I love a deep golden, mustard tone of yellow so that will be next on my list. Not pictured is my lavender/pinkish Romney Kerchief but even so, it is easy to see that I favor blues and greens in my knitting! 

I'm also picturing a few draw pulls on the sides for cowls and hats as they don't drape as easily over the rungs of the ladder. Maybe something like these:

source: 1/2/3/4/5

**side note: i brought the ladder outside to photograph as the lighting is far superior. Also, I can show off my plants that I've managed to keep alive!

Fiber Friday

Finishing projects seems to be the theme of this summer and that is OK with me!

In the knitting department I've been trying to finish an older project before starting a new one. In theist week I've finished a blanket for world vision (no photo), dishcloths (more later), and this raspberry colored version of the honey cowl in a cotton blend from Michaels a few years back. I love this pattern!

For my grand finale... drumroll please... 

...my fireflies rising shawlette!!!!! I feel extra excited about this one because I really took time and care to do it well, plus it looks so fancy! I really loved knitting this piece and would absolutely make it again, but not quite yet, I have a few things in the queue that I'm anxious to try.

We took a recon trip to the yarn shop yesterday (sans gift certificate so I would truly just look). I have my eye set on a golden, mustardy yellow tone after realizing ice ever knitting with that color.

I'm contemplating another shawl because they are fun, fairly simple but really satisfying, but we shall see. I took photos of potential yarns including price yardage and weight so that I could look more seriously at my pattern options and decide what's next for the needles.

I've been back on track with planning out and writing blog posts so we'll see if I can get back in a groove before fall! Happy creating!

fiber friday

After knitting and unknitting a variety of patterns with this yarn I finally decided to look at the yarn brand site to see what they recommended for the yarn. Let the experts be the experts, right? So I explored the Brooklyn Tweed website and found the Romney Kerchief.

What I quickly realized is that I saw this shawl at the yarn shop where I purchased my yarn and I loved it there. Guess I should've gone with my gut.

At first glance it seemed overly simple and I had a hard time pressing the purchase button, but it was definitely work the money to have a pattern designed for the yarn and I learned a few techniques along the way.

The color changes a git depending on the lightly. Is it lavender, rose, grey? 

I loved knitting this shawl and would recommend it for a basic shawl pattern because of the easy to remember row repeats. I also would like to quote my favorite part of the pattern and recommend that you "block aggressively." The drape of the shawl changed dramatically for the better after I soaked and blocked it (aggressively!).

Now to do a bit more on my Fireflies Rising Shawlette and decide what new project to cast on.

Happy Fibery Friday!

a list for july

Taking a cue from Juliann's blog.

finish a shawl (or 2?)
run, run, then run some more
try some new recipes
finish a book
make music
do something with my photos from Hawai'i
finding ways to choose gratitude

fiber friday

I finished the Mara shawl! It was a really fun knit and pretty quick, as I used worsted weight yarn and size 10 needles.

I really enjoyed the easy ruffle border. A fun detail.

Now I'm knitting a hat with my nettle dyes yarn. I'm using a pattern from ravelry with a single cable, thoigh I've decided to change the type of cable. (Will post the pattern link later!) Here it is in progress.

Happy knitting!

Fiber (not) Friday no. 5

Illness and long hours at work dominated my week and my blogging presence was quite sad, but I'm on the mend and determined to get back on track! Here is a little fiber update that wasn't quite ready Friday.

Last Saturday we went to Bainbridge Island to celebrate our anniversary and the boy spoiled me with beautiful yarn. But I'm making you wait a little longer to see it. I'm dreaming of what it might become and until I decide to cast on officially I've been making mean progress on my Mara Shawl.

I'm 1 inch into the final edging which is a 2k2p ribbed ruffle. I have really enjoyed this shawl and that 85% of it was pretty easy to pick up and set down without much thought. Hoping that i can get it all finished this week! It's a bit big and thick to wear this time of year, however it  would be nice in the cool mornings.

Fiber Friday no. 4

I recently came into some free worsted weight yarn.

Everyone dance!

I took some creamy colored yarn and immediately cast on the mara shawl from Madeline Tosh which I've been eagerly waiting to try. Cute blue bird stitch markers are from mom

I also grabbed some black yarn to make a hat for church. I want to do something simple but fun since it's a smaller project. I'm thinking this pattern might be nice because I can use a few other bits of yarn I have around as added details. Maybe a variety of thin stripes?

I'm still plugging away at my Fireflies Rising Shawlette, I just haven't had much opportunity for extended periods of knitting where I can sit down and really dive into it.

This weekend I plan to get my knitting on. The rainy weather seems like perfect knitting weather!

Fiber Friday no. 1

With two shawls under my belt, I am on my way to a new knitting addiction! There is something satisfying about knitting row after row, watching the shape grow and take form.

I am especially enjoying the new patterns and stitches I've discovered. I've been knitting for nearly 10 years and I'm only now feeling like a  real knitter. As will most hobbies I believe there will always be new hints and techniques to try, which is one of the reasons I continue to pick up my needles!

Here is my current project, the Fireflies Rising Shawlette from Curious Handmade. I'm using size 6 needles and a beautiful new yarn from our local yarn shop called Kettle Yarns.

After a week back from spring break, i realized how challenging yet necessary it is for me to make time to knit. I didn't make as much progress as i'd hoped so here is to making time for fiber fun!

Fiber Friday - Each Friday I will post about all things fiber related. Some weeks will feature yarn projects and other weeks fabric with a few projects I am dreaming of sprinkled in between.