Not quite

First of all, I AM KIDDING!!!!!!

Ayeessh!! I can’t believe that some of you would think that I would make that robe like jacket patchwork thing. And I sure ain’t paying $35 dollars for the pattern alone!

So, I don’t really do this (talk about other people and their business), but I can’t help it with this one. This lady seems to run a legitimate knitting design business called Catirina Bonet Designs. I can see how they would be cool and chic and trendy, but I think I’ll still stick to boring one color raglans and simple lace.

I mean, that coat looked like someone went to all the Wal-Mart’s around the country, scrounged up as many colors of Red Heart Super Saver yarn as possible. Then returning home, opened up Barbara Walker’s books and piece together as many texture patterns with bobbles and what not, section after section, color after color until it can be called a coat.

It’s a very neat and innovative concept.

And I’m going to hell for being so obnoxious.

But of course, she does have some other lovely designs that you might want to check out.

I guess I’m just bored, surfing the internet.

More lace update to come soon.

Next on the list

This is going to be my next project!

Perseverance Pays

After quite a bit of hard work and perseverance, and a minor injury, I might have just tamed the beast a little. I present to you, my feeble attempts.
It’s so pretty stretched out and photographed with a flash. I tried taking some pictures in natural light and it just didn’t look good. I guess light from the flash really needs to shine through those yarn overs. That’s the whole point of lace isn’t it? A play of light on positive and negative space.

So, maybe I can talk a little bit about Jaggerspun Zephyr. Did you know that Zephyr means a “gentle breeze” or “any thing of fine, soft, or light quality”? I was just doing a spell check and clicked on the thesaurus button accidentally. Anyway, I digress.

So at first, I totally did not like the Zephyr at all. It was too thin and too fuzzy and too slippery. But of course all this was really my fault. It’s like a carpenter blaming his tools, when in fact; he can’t cut wood worth shit.

But now, when I got a little somethin'-somethin' going, the Zephyr is quite a joy to work with. I got used to its thinness. However, this is about as thin as I can go though, I can’t imagine how some people work with cobweb weight wool.

A 50-50 blend of silk and wool, it has a beautiful sheen to it. It is also amazingly durable. I must have ripped the same wool at least a dozen times and it didn’t break on me. It just fuzzed up a little.

I am really liking the density of a size 3 US (3.25 mm) needle, thanks to you all. I don’t know how it will look in a stockinette base, but it looks quite nice in garter.

So, there you have it, a little progress picture and a mini yarn review. This is definitely one of those projects like Forbes Forest where it will take me at least a year to complete.

Yarn Review - Classic Elite Skye Tweed

Swatching time again!

The yarn above is Classic Elite Skye Tweed. I’ve always wanted to try Barbara Walker’s top down method, so I bought a shit load of this to make a custom Saddle Shoulder Sweater from the Top Down and now I don’t know if I like it.

This is always the problem when buying stuff online, you can’t pet it. I’m very satisfied with the color when it arrived. I’m also satisfied with the weight of the yarn, exactly what I wanted, a little between true worsted and DK.

But the scratchiness factor is super high! When knitting up, it felt like a Brillo pad. Initially, the swatch looked like a door mat, you know, the kind with the big WELCOME on it where you clean off your shoes.

However, washing it changed it a little. My swatch bled faintly in a warm water wash with a few drops of Kookaburra Woolwash.

It definitely softened up and some of the scratchiness went away, but not completely. The stitches got more even and sort of melded together. I could see that the woolen fibers had bloomed into place, creating an ok looking cohesive fabric.

I do have to say though that this is the first time that I actually don't have to ask you all what size needle you like. I am going to knit this in a size 6 US (4.00 mm) needle. There you go, my first confident decision and my first yarn review!

Earrings

I’ve been meaning to post this for a while now. Look what a fellow knitter sent me for Christmas!

Earrings!!

No, just kidding, I think they are stitch markers. Hand made nonetheless. This knitster is none other than the famous Charles. I say famous because he’s now a celebrity since his debut on the show Knitty Gritty.

Thank you, thank you! You’re so sweet dear!

Lace Hurts!

Hello Knitsters. A Happy New Year to all! I guess a post is long overdue since the last one.

So, look at this picture and tell me what you see.

Click to enlarge to see a very very sharp Size 3 US Knit Picks circular needle and my poor dried out, calloused, chapped finger in a band aid because this needle literally poked a hole in my finger! I’ll spare showing you the puncture wound itself, but it looks like I got bit by a snake.

Injury or no injury, these needles are AWESOME!! I’ve been in search for a needle sharp enough for lace and I think I have found it! A new favorite, and inexpensive too.

But alas, no matter how sharp the needles are, if you suck at knitting, you suck at knitting. The pictures below are shots of the bad knitting aftermath of the Sampler Stole.

Let’s just put it this way, I bought a new ball of crochet cotton as waste yarn for the provisional cast on and now I only have half a ball left! That’s how many times I cast on and ripped cast on and rip. OCD indeed!!

Anyways, it would be misleading to say that I didn’t make any progress at all. According to the spreadsheet found here, I’ve done 5% of the stole. (Check out my progress bar! I love playing with it!) But I’ll post a picture when the stole has more meat on its bones. For now, process pics.