welcome september

Whew, finally there's a quiet moment to catch up on things! So many highs and lows in the past week and a half. We celebrated the little guy's birthday, aced the first week of school, enjoyed a visit from grandma L. (my MIL), and said a teary farewell to my parents. They are heading back to Vietnam for a few years. But looking on the bright side, I am planning on visiting them next March and already counting down the months until then. Still, it will be a big adjustment for us not to be able to see and talk to them everyday. And I also will dearly miss my mom's cooking. She taught me how to make her pho noodle soup and some other favorite recipes before she left and I took copious notes of all her secrets. Just looking at these recipes is a comfort. As is knitting, reading etc.

Finally dug out my neglected Uniform cardigan and seamed up the sleeves. But now I am undecided as to what neckband to knit. Should I go with the casual/relaxed simple band or the dressier shaped band? 

Also had plans to join the leethal adventure knit-a-long, but only made it through the first section before ripping it out. I have decided that mystery KAL's are not my cup of tea, at least for right now. Not knowing where my knitting efforts were heading was more stressful than enjoyable, plus I kept cheating ;)

On the reading front, I am re-visiting the Outlander books while devouring the first few episodes of the television series. It has been so fun to see the characters and story come to life on the screen. Also loving the period costumes and settings. I started a Pinterest board for the handknits popping up here and there in the episodes so far. There are already a few patterns on ravelry to recreate some of these...Claire's chunky garter stitch cowl (here and here), her rustic shrug, and mitts. 

warped & unfocused

Sorry for yet another random disorganized post. That's just the kind of summer we're having lately.

☼ I took my niece to Warped Tour recently and boy, was it a long exhausting day! Although I managed to sneak in some knitting, there was really no chance to sit and relax. And I definitely felt my age while standing in the midst of a bunch of screaming teenage girls going hysterical over this band full of cuties. Front row center with a sea of kids crowd surfing over me. But it was worth it when I saw the smiles of happiness on my niece's face.

☼ Last week, the little guy and I went to the ocean to soak up the sun and play in the waves. The time went by much too fast and now we are going through a bit of beach withdrawal. The cure? Lots of ice cream, a Miyazaki film fest and many trips to the pool. And for me, a new toy:

The name says it all. I can pretty much zoom through a square in about 15 minutes. I am starting out with a simple coaster pattern from the Purl Bee, since mixing summery brights with neutrals is always fun no matter the craft.

☼ The knitting basket is quite full at the moment. There hasn't been much motivation to finish anything this past month. I have been working on a little bit of this or that whenever the mood strikes. Need to buckle down and actually get some things off the needles in August. The last thing I want is to still be knitting with linen or cotton when the weather turns cooler. But also finding it difficult to stay focused lately. Do you have the same problem around this time of year?

a knit for every mood

The last few weeks have been pretty difficult schedule-wise and health-wise. The February Blahs get to me every single year. But thankfully things are looking up and will be back to so-called normal soon. I am just grateful that we only had one (!) snow day so far this week. Crazy winter weather! But looking on the bright side, there has been quite an accumulation of new knits that I can show you.

First, we have Siri. The beautiful and unusual yoke design was what initially drew me in. It is all achieved with crossed stitches which is perfect for when I am in need of an intricate and interesting knit. The motif brings to mind bare winter trees, especially when combined with the brown fishermen's wool. A great knit for cold dark rainy days like today.

Next up is a soft and super bulky ribbed cowl. Mindless and fast. This one should be off the needles and gifted soon.

Loving the winter neutrals like brown and grey right now, but sometimes a little color is needed to brighten up the string of dark days. That is when I dig out my on-going Pine Bough. Still mindless but with just the right amount of subtle colorplay.

For something a little bit more cheerful, there's a second pair of camp out mitts on the needles using the rest of the Noro Kureyon yarn from the first pair. Beautiful pinks and blues have me looking forward to sunnier summer weather, although as you can see in the picture, the color forecast ahead looks dark and grim. Oh the infuriating randomness of Noro!

Lastly, I have been experimenting with garter jacquard. Here's a fun heart pattern found in Mary Jane Mucklestone's 200 Fair Isle Motifs directory. Not sure where this one is headed, but the combination of the bright snowy white and robins egg blue always manages to lift up my spirits. 

And so there you have it. A knit for every winter's mood. Good thing there's only ten days left in February because the WIP basket is now filled up :) Hope that you all are well and Happy belated Valentine's Day! Please check back on Friday for a little Valentine's present. It is a free pattern that I was hoping to post on Valentine's Day but couldn't manage to string together in time. As I'm sure husbands the world over were thinking on that day, "Better late than never!"

quick recap of vkl

the view of Times Square from my room

Tomorrow reality sets in again with my first day back to work. But today I am still daydreaming about what an amazingly fun vacation it has been. Vogue Knitting Live was so cool on so many levels. The best part was meeting and socializing with a bunch of friendly & fun loving knitters from different parts of the country (one as far away as Alaska!). Knitters are the best people! I also had a chance to meet up and go out to dinner with an internet friend :)

Siljan Mittens by Nancy Bush

My second favorite part of the event were the two day long classes that I took with Nancy Bush (on twined knitting) and Franklin Habit (on different colorwork techniques). Both are awesome teachers who are passionate about passing their knowledge onto new knitters. I am very excited to apply some of these new techniques to my knitting and to share them in more detail with you.

Riverside Studio Yarns from Quebec

Matryoshka doll shawl pin from Michelles Assortment & bird buttons from Incomparable Buttons

As you can see from the above two pictures, the third best part was the Marketplace. So many terrific vendors, so little time to shop. Plus, it was super busy. But I did manage to get my greedy hands on some new-to-me yarns and pretty little notions. Aren't the buttons adorable? They, along with the woven basket below, were handcrafted in Africa.

Camp Out Mitts

Lastly, it was simply wonderful to knit knit knit without interruption. I love my two guys, but sometimes a girl just wants to knit have fun! Lots of things came off the needles this week and I am excited to show them off on Friday. Until then, I have a lot of blog reading to catch up on!

knitter's armour

state street cowl, zara top, express jeans

When it comes to holiday shopping, I try to buy local as much as possible. So usually there is only one day during the Christmas season where a trip to the mall is necessary. Today was the dreaded day. But I went prepared this year, armouring myself in a warm wool cowl and...

...my knitting! It definitely came in handy when I found myself behind 13 other shoppers waiting in line to buy mall gift cards. I also felt a little smug when I whipped out my knitting in the toy store as other shoppers looked around in desperation for an escape route. We were all witnessing a multi-sibling meltdown which resulted in a serious traffic jam at the register. Note to self: next year, bring ear plugs, too.

Here's a closeup of the current take-along project. It's the Piece Out hat by Stephen West. Easy and fun so far. Also check out my latest obsession: madbird project bags. This one is a perfect size for small projects like hats, socks and mittens. I love the wristlet clutches and pattern wallets the most. They have such a cool range of fabrics. Couldn't resist the hedgehogs and toadstools. Who says armour can't be cute?

happiness is...

a trio of sweater ornaments ready for gift wrapping

duplicate stitch fun

rainbow colors

pockets and surprise candy canes in the mail (thanks Steph!)

The weather has been unpredictable this week. We have had snow, rain, sleet, ice and sunshine, sometimes all in one day! Yesterday was a Snow Day for the little guy. We celebrated by eating our favorite cold weather lunch (tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches) and drinking hot cocoa. Plus lots and lots of sweet treats. Trying really hard not to look at the calendar but I have a feeling that the holiday crazies are just around the corner. All the more reason to enjoy the little things that are making me happy right now.

kissing the holidays

I hope that all of you who celebrated Thanksgiving last week had a wonderful one. It was a work heavy week for me (60 hours!) but I still managed to spend part of Thanksgiving Day with my two favorite guys. We had a quiet and cozy evening. Some of it was spent putting up the Christmas tree and decorating the house. Everything feels more festive when there's red and green everywhere. I asked the little guy what his favorite part of the holidays was. His answer made me chuckle: candy canes! What a simple and fun response, so I decided to make that our theme for this year. Keeping it simple, with lots of good food, sweet treats, handmade goodies and best of all, meaningful time spent with loved ones. Oh, and Christmas movies! Gotta have plenty of those.

Here's my holiday gift knitting list this year. Again, keeping it simple:

☃ Handmade ornaments for Grandma L. (my MIL) and hopefully for myself, too. I am currently knitting a few of these. Also planning on casting on for a couple of these adorable (and free!) holiday stockings.
☃ A hat each for my two guys. This has become a winter tradition. As is choosing a hat pattern from Mr. Stephen West. This year's pattern is Piece Out. Love the playful brim on this one.
☃ A couple of quick to knit cowls for my two nieces. I was at Target the other night and saw some simple ribbed ones made out of sparkly chunky yarn. Then I found some similar yarn at Michael's yesterday. Serendipity!

Hope that your holiday knitting is going well. I plan on just enjoying each project as it comes and not getting stressed out if everything is not finished by December 25th. My family know me well and have come to expect a few IOU's under the tree along with their candy canes ❄

sidetracked

I know, I know. November is more than halfway over which means that it is past time to start on the holiday gift knitting. There are also several selfish WIP's needing my attention. This is no time to get sidetracked! shouts the Voice of Reason.

I didn't listen. Somehow I found myself distracted by intarsia, rickrack ribbing and bright colors. The yarn is Sheep(ish) by Vickie Howell. I have a ton of it in my stash. What do you think...maybe I can turn this into a Christmas gift ;)



(linking up with WIP Wednesday)

hardly knitting

....but there sure has been a whole lotta seaming going on here! I am trying my darnedest to finish up Aidez now that November has arrived with its chillier temperatures. Perfect weather for bundling up in a warm cabled sweater. The little fabric pouch was a handmade gift from my niece. She loves to poke around in my knitting bag whenever she visits. Last week we spent an entire day together just chatting and knitting. Such a treat for me, especially now that she is in middle school and more often hanging out with her friends instead of her boring aunt. Anyways, she was pretty appalled at the cluttered mess of my knitting bag and promptly set about organizing it. The fabric pouch is now the designated place to put my stitch markers. Sweet girl.

There has been a little more progress on the Pine Bough cowl. Really enjoying this simple colorwork pattern. Nothing better than an undemanding project. Just knitting colors round and round and not having to worry about weaving in the long floats.

Leaving you with a last farewell to October picture. The little guy decided to be Michael Jackson again this year for Halloween. Here he is showing off his dance moves! 


(linking up with WIP Wednesday)

cozy day

It's a cold, dark and drizzly day today. Norm recommended skipping the errand running and just staying warm and cozy inside. Good idea, Norm!

So I spent most of the day sitting in my favorite room reading and knitting. Here's a close-up of the knitting:

This is a free cowl pattern called Pine Bough. I am unimaginatively using the same yarn and colorway as the pattern sample. The colorwork is very easy and fun so far. A perfect rainy day knit. Hope everyone has a safe and fun Halloween! The little guy is still debating on what to be. I suggested he wear his long red union suit and a blue wig and be Thing One from The Cat in the Hat.

nothing says cozy like a bunch of Halloween candy : )

(linking up with WIP Wednesday)

autumn colors

After a handful of rainy gloomy days, this week we are enjoying some beautiful October weather. I love the colors to be found at this time of year. Red, orange, gold, brown and burgundy all combine to make such glorious viewing. Some of them have found their way into my crafting.

Amazing how just a little bit of autumn color can inject new energy and happiness into all of my projects. I am making pretty good progress on both the knitting and spinning. The first picture is of something that I will reveal on Friday. Very relieved with the fact that I still remember how to crochet after such a long time without practicing. I finally finished spinning all of the Corriedale fiber from Maryland Sheep and Wool. Now I get to practice on this beautiful BFL & firestar combed top from Dyeabolical. Spinning with BFL is quite a revelation. So soft. The firestar gives off a bit of sparkle to the colors. Irresistible. Makes up for the fact that my second handspun is kind of an under spun mess:

On the bright side, this has only given me an excuse to play with natural dyeing techniques. I am aiming for a yellow/gold color. Just need to collect more onions skins. Or inconspicuously sneak some out of the onion bin at my local grocery store.



(linking up with WIP Wednesday)

daydreaming

If only....

yarn could grow on trees.

my second handspun

UFO's could finish themselves.

my I vow to finish you someday Aidez as soon as I figure out where I left off cardigan

one front and two sleeves could magically appear overnight.

Kaari pullover: back and pockets done

yarn ends didn't exist.

Chance of Showers cardigan: still waiting for a dyebath

dinner could be on the table with just a twitch of the nose, leaving more hours free for the fun stuff.

Happily, some daydreams can come true ; ) You can find this betwitched recipe here.

departure

Stepping out of my comfort zone a little with this latest sweater project. It is a design by Norah Gaughan called Kaari. Simple stockinette raglan design. Fabulous workman's pockets. Outdoorsy and comfy. Plus, some of my favorite designers have knitted this (check out Kate Davies', Lilalu's and Heidi Kirrmaier's versions). So, what's the problem? Well....the whole thing is worked in pieces and then seamed. A project that requires extensive finishing is quite a departure from my usual top-down lazy approach to sweater knitting. So why not modify it to be knit seamlessly? I will probably regret saying this, but I think that the seams will add much needed structure and shape to the sweater. I am also knitting this one out of Lion Brand fishermen's wool, which would not be my usual first choice of yarn for a sweater. But after seeing this version, I dug deep in the stash and pulled out two skeins of the exact same colorway. Hooray for those 40% off coupons at Michaels! I like the tweedy brown and cream colors and the yarn is surprisingly pleasant to knit with. Very rustic and hopefully durable. Has anyone used fishermen's wool for anything?

In case you were wondering, that's my new buddy Norm the Penguin modeling my WIP this week. He was a gift from my MIL, bless her fun loving soul. Norm and I will hopefully be spending a lot of time together this afternoon, soaking in the gorgeous sunshine and knitting a bit.



(linking up with WIP Wednesday)

adventures in grey

First, the good news: I was finally able to track down a ball of the discontinued slate grey hempathy for my Chance of showers cardigan.

Now for the bad news:

Because of the different dye lots, the colors do not even come close to matching. What I have been knitting with is a pretty blue grey. The new ball is a muddy dull grey. Not very noticeable in the above picture, but it kind of looks like I spilled coffee on the collar. So now I am waiting for a shipment of fiber reactive dye to come in, along with soda ash fixer and textile detergent. Because according to the experts, I need all of these things to dye my grey sweater....grey. Oy.

Hope that your current projects are causing you less headaches than mine. Here is something that is making me happy, though.

I finished my first skein of handspun! It is extremely wonky but I love it! It is not going to stay in the skein for long, because I have plans for this one.  'Cause the whole point of making your own yarn is to knit something with it, right? 

possibilities

...that is what I love best about this time of year. The possibility of learning new things, of having new experiences, starting new projects, meeting new friends.

Finally sitting down to take the beginning Craftsy spindle spinning class that I had purchased months ago. Extremely excited to start learning how to spin. I have been reading this informative book, but as with any new crafty venture, the learning is in the doing. Here is my first attempt so far:
 

I wish that I had videotaped the comedy of errors involved in spinning the leader yarn. Almost broke my spindle in the process. Now, though, it is pure fun! I am spinning a worsted weight yarn using the park and draft method.

My Chance of showers cardigan is on hold until more yarn arrives to complete it. Yup, I ran out of yarn again! Second project in a row for this to happen. Looking on the bright side, now I can start on a new fall sweater.

Simple pattern and bulky yarn should make Agnes a quick and easy knit. Plus I couldn't resist the pockets. The knitting on this one is going so fast! It took just two days to finish the body. Probably one more day for the sleeves. Knitting them two at a time. Can't wait to finally get something off the needles. It seems that this past month or so I have been knitting and knitting but not having anything to show for it.

Looking forward to this Sunday and attending my first "knit in the park" hosted by looped yarn works at DuPont Circle. I heard that looped carries Quince & co. yarns, so will have to indulge in some yarn retail therapy while I'm in the neighborhood. Since my LYS closed its doors a few months ago, there hasn't been many opportunities to meet people with a shared interest in fiber and knitting. So this event will be a fun chance to make some new friends!


(Linking up with WIP Wednesday)

summer's end

Building a cruise ship with daddy

Love this purple house (also love the yarn store next to it)

A cupcake shop

Chance of Showers cardigan...makes for great beach knitting

Last week, we celebrated the little guy's eighth birthday with a trip to the ocean. His grandma L. also came down for her annual summer visit. Lots of beach knitting and visits to some local hidden gems here on the eastern shore. The week seemed to have flown by! The end of summer has caught us all by surprise and now it is back to school time for the little guy. He started third grade on Monday at the big kid's elementary school and I was a little worried about how he would adjust to his new environment. He seems to be dealing with the change better than his worry wart mama, thank goodness. On the knitting front, I am still working away on the Chance of Showers cardigan. I just have the lower lace edging and collar to finish. The creamy white cables in the last picture was a spur of the moment idea that just popped into my head. It will be my farewell to summer project, so check back on Friday to see what it is!



(linking up with WIP Wednesday)

klutz

What do you call someone who cuts her hand one day, then turns around and cuts the other hand the next day? Yup, Klutz with a capital K. So knitting is on temporary hold for a few days. On the bright side, the Chance of Showers cardigan is moving right along. It is so comforting to work on a project that is similar enough to a previous project (my Vitamin D cardigan) that my mind is on automatic mode while knitting it. And yes, it is so nice to not have any doubts as to the wearability of the finished project (ahem, I'm looking at you, Hekla). Hopefully the progress on this one will continue to speed along so that I can get started on some warm & woolly sweaters. There are soooo many patterns out there right now that I want to knit! Feeling a case of sweater fever coming on. Even though we are already into August and I have yet to finish one sweater this year. Going to shoot for five by the end of December. Hmmm, maybe I should make the hubby chop all the veggies from now on.


(linking up with WIP Wednesday)