Chug chug chug!

I've been working away on Erato. Two more muses are due to be released at Stitches West in just a few days, so I'm hoping I can steam through this one and be ready to start a new one this weekend!



It'll depend on whether or not I run out of yarn, though. It's looking miiiiighty thin, but since I'm alternating skeins every couple of rows, it's a little harder to judge how much I have left than if I were using just one ball.

Of course, I could weigh it, but - where's the fun in that?

Floodgates

Floodgates

I deeply regret that I did not photograph all my new yarn in a pile so I could use the photo as an intro to this post. Poor planning.

I confessed to ordering yarn last week, and the yarn I ordered arrived extremely promptly. Spirit Trail Fiberworks is in my same state so I was not surprised at all when the yarn showed up the day after I paid for it.



Not surprised, but still pleased. Need I say, Jennifer's customer service is awesome.

This yarn is one of those that defies photography. Even with a filter on the flash, I couldn't get an accurate color. I attribute this to the reflective quality of the silk, which makes the color look much lighter when photographed with a flash than it is in real life. The color is darker and deeper than shows here, so suffice it to say, as lovely as this photo is, it is a far cry from the yarn's actual beauty.



Saturday my woolie silk arrived.



Saturday, I also went to my LYS. Now, I went intending to check out the new Hiyahiya sharps. I love my Chiaogoos with a deep and abiding passion, but I do miss the convenience and economy of an interchangeable set. And, as it happens, I had a gift certificate someone gave me as an engagement gift. So, that was the plan. Go look at needles. No need for yarn. Tunnel vision.

Except, I made one fatal error. I did not go to the yarn store alone. And while I was decided on the needle set within a matter of minutes, she was zooming around the store looking at yarn. Showing me yarn. And, to avoid just standing around the counter staring into space - I walked around and looked at yarn too. And before I knew it, these two skeins caught my eye.



I just couldn't help it. The next muse Romi plans to release is a two-color shawl, and while I thought I knew what I was going to use, the yarn I had in mind was quite a bit shorter in yardage than the yarn Romi used and these two colors were just so perfect for this shawl and...I put it on the counter next to my Hiyahiyas.

Except my shopping companion was not done looking yet and I lingered a bit too long next to the shelf and then all of a sudden I was holding these.



I was holding these because there is a certain friend I go to church with, who is a total sweetie, and every time she sees me knitting she says, "Where's the blue one?" because she had made it known to me that when I decided to make a her a shawl, she would like it to be blue.

Now as it happens, she has a sister that also goes to my church; the two are very close in age and very different in personality, and I was suddenly taken with the idea of knitting the pink/purple shawl for one sister, who is much more flamboyant and outgoing, and the blue shawl for the other sister, who is much calmer, with an understated sense of humor and charming wit.

So I walked out of there with four skeins of yarn and plans to knit two of the next muse, even though Romi is actually intending to release two muses at once and I AM ALREADY SO BEHIND Y'ALL.

But there you go. And this also neatly solves the problem of how one sister would feel if I gave the other sister a shawl and didn't have one for both.

It's possible that I will change my mind and save one color combo for the OTHER two color muse, but I like the symmetry of giving them both the same one. But we'll see when the muses are released and the names are revealed. All the yarns shown are Neighborhood Fiber Co. Studio Sock, which I have to say is easily the softest 100% superwash merino I've ever touched. Usually I prefer to work with cashmere blends as the 100% superwash merino yarns are rougher than I prefer (yes, I said it. merino alone is too rough for me. It's my knitting and I can spoil myself if I want to.)

In the meantime, I have started the newest muse.



Unfortunately, the two skeins were visibly different even before I wound them, so I'm having to alternate, which is a bit of a pain, but other than that, I'm cruising along. The above photo was after the first repeat of Chart E; I have since completed most of a second one as well. I am a tiny bit concerned about having enough yarn, because the pattern calls for 400 yards of fingering weight and I have 500 yards of sport, but I figure, what the heck. If I run out and have to order another skein - I'm already alternating anyway. I could do the math and figure out ahead of time, but I'm too lazy I like adventure.

I did start Caliz on Friday night, as it made excellent social knitting.



I'm a little shy of halfway through the (only) chart, so I feel good about finishing this one in a relatively expedient manner, even with the other knitting.

I also spent some time working on Galadriel's Mirror this week before all the new stuff came in.



The difference in color between the first skein and the second is dreadfully obvious, but it occurs right at a pattern shift anyway, so I'm trying not to mind it much. Although I'm a little bitter that the first skein was so completely unvariegated, because it would have been much more interesting if it had as much variation as the second one. Oh well. Perils of hand dye. I regret nothing.



It took me half an evening to finish up my Gothic Tam.



And while I did not block Madrona, I did take some finished photos.







I'll block it this week. My wedding dress is in and I'd like to take the shawl to my fitting on Saturday and see how it looks!

I'm using the Hiyahiya needle set to knit Erato (the current muse) so I'll post a review of those needles once I've spent a little more time with them. This post is quite full enough as it is!

Freeeeeeedom!!!

Three or four weeks of silence deserves a bonus post, don't you think?

I've finished Madrona! No pictures as yet, but she's finished. And that means - I'm free to knit other stuff again! This excites me greatly as I am pretty far behind on all of Romi's beautiful creations. So, the question is, what shall I knit next?

1. Caliz - this design came out several months ago, and was originally a club pattern for A Verb for Keeping Warm. I've heard nothing but good things about AVFKW so I'm excited to try out their yarns. I wasn't in the club, but I picked up a skein of AVFKW Metamorphosis that's been all wound up and ready for this pattern. The buzz is that this will be a pretty quick knit, which will be perfect while I wait for yarn to arrive for...

2. Erato - The newest muse from Romi is out, but after reviewing my stash and thinking about the person I want to give this too, I've decided I need to purchase yarn for it. I've picked Fleece Artist Woolie Silk 3-ply in Rose. It's a heavier weight than called for by the pattern, which I hope will result in a slightly larger end product. This shawl is flirty, feminine, and sweet, and I knew immediately which of the wonderful ladies in my life I wanted to give it to. She's been a wonderful support and friend and I'm excited about surprising her with this shawl. But, since I'm not using stash, I have to wait for the yarn to arrive, so I will fill my time with Caliz until it does.

3. Pulelehua, Pins & Lace Winter 2012 - I'm really excited about this gorgeous shawl. I love butterflies in general, and my first memories are of Hawaii, so this shawl speaks to me on multiple levels. I tossed around a few stash ideas for this, but Jennifer at Spirit Trail Fiberworks had extra club yarn available, and I had to go for it. There's just no more perfect color for this pattern, and the pictures are absolutely gorgeous. I'm really excited to start this one (and what a gorgeous splash of color to break up the bleakness of winter - even an unseasonably warm winter), but, again, I will have to wait for the yarn to get here.

4. Galadriel's Mirror - Honestly, I can't think of anything I would rather knit less at this point in winter than a grey shawl, but as this one remains unfinished, I'm keeping it on my to-knit list. I have 2 charts to go, and although the rows are incredibly long at this point, the knitting itself is getting simpler, so if I can just hang in there a little longer, there is a chance I will actually finish this one in my lifetime.

5. Permafrost - I also owe this one some attention. I began it during a bout of startitis when none of my other projects were at a particularly happy place, and it's been stalled for sometime, so it's time to get the motor revving again.

Ergh, that list actually looks pretty daunting, doesn't it, especially when I have lots more wedding planning and moving stuff in my future? My priorities are the Romi projects. It's easier for me to help others on the forum when I've worked on a shawl myself, and to be honest, it's just so much fun knitting with others!

AND, in two weeks Romi is releasing two more muses at Stitches West. I don't know how I'm going to keep up! (Answer: I'm not. There's just no way.)

Oh well, it's a beautiful place to be in, isn't it, having more beautiful patterns and yarn than you know what to do with? Nothing to do but keep calm and knit on!

Look! Knitted Stuff!

I can't believe how long it's been since my last post, but sadly, all of the posts I would have made would have been the same. "Still here, not much to show, work and wedding are taking up all my time!"

BUT, today I do have some things to show! After an incredibly grueling couple of weeks at work, I finally got some time to relax a bit, and work on my Madroña wedding shawl. One wing is now complete and I am well into the second! In fact, I took this picture a couple of days ago, so it's a bit out of date. You repeat the wing chart 12 times for each wing and then knit one more chart, ending in the bind off. At the time of this picture, I had only about 4 repeats complete on the second wing. I'm now up to 9 repeats. It's funny how much faster you can get at knitting a chart after you've done it 16 times already.



Unless work or some other fact of life interferes, I'm hoping I can be finished by the end of the weekend. I can get about 1 chart repeat done a night - 1 and a half if I get home a little early. I was hoping to get to 10 repeats over the weekend, but I decided the superbowl was too high risk to have this around, what with the jumping and the cheering and the food everywhere. So, I started a little side project!



Everyone has been saying what a super quick knit Romi's Gothic Tam is, and they did not lie. The hat consists of 4 charts plus the ribbed brim. I got through 3 of the 4 charts during the game (plus some post-game commentary). I actually attempted to start this hat a while ago but got a case of the stupids regarding the Emily Ocker cast on, despite the fact that I've done it several times before, so I had to go look up a video tutorial for a refresher before I started yesterday. But, once I got going, it was really quite an easy knit and a fairly intuitive pattern - easy to catch your mistakes on. To be honest, it's calling me a bit - I could totally finish this tonight if I tried - but the wedding shawl comes first. You can bet I'll be finishing up this one as soon as I get the chance though.

I'm actually hoping I'll have enough yarn to make two. A dear friend sends me yarn every year for Christmas from a local farm fesitval. I never know what she's going to send and I always love getting it because it's one of a kind. This year she sent me two skeins of undyed alpaca. I'm hoping I can make a hat from each skein, and then I'll have one to keep and one to send back to her. The only snag is, she's not a knitter, and I worry that when I send her back things made from the yarn she gave me, she thinks I don't like it. This year she asked if I was tired of getting yarn. I said, NO PLEASE KEEP SENDING ME YARN PLEASE PLEASE.

As I sit here typing this, I'm remembering that she sent me two pretty hefty skeins of yarn naturally dyed yarn last year too that would make really cute tams...hmmmmm...

How many knitted hats do you think one Texan needs?

Small Victories

I have only this to show today:



The hands of my beloved, clad in wool to guard against the bitter cold. Finally. This completes the set of gloves, hat, and scarf I promised to make him sometime last year. He made the mistake of asking right as it was getting warm, and also of asking for a Scarf of Unusual Size (not really, but still) so it took a while. Then I got kind of stumped on the second glove because gloves are boring. But it's freezing outside and he refused to wear the other pieces until he had the complete set, and I felt guilty about his cold hands, so I overcame my second glove syndrome and lo, he can now go forth into the cold swaddled in red wool.

I also got the additional crystals I ordered and finished the bind off on the bottom section of my wedding shawl, but I haven't gotten any farther than that. I had to work over the long weekend (woe) which put a serious damper on the stuff I had planned to accomplish that weekend, so the only thing I have to show are a bunch of caligraphied invitations that I can't photograph without putting people's addresses online. I can't waint until I have time and energy to knit more - lots of 'want to knits' piling up while I try to deal with all this mess!

Reckless Optimism

Here is the list of knitting I took on my Christmas vacation:

1. Galadriel's Mirror
2. Second fingerless glove for CodeNinja
3. Yarn, needles, and pattern for a Gothic Tam
4. Permafrost

Here is the list of what I actually worked on during my Christmas vacation:

1. Galadriel's Mirror

Even with two plane flights and a total of 16 hours in the car, I worked on nothing but Galadriel's mirror and still didn't get anywhere close to done.

Still, it went from looking like this:



To looking like this:



...Yeah, still doesn't feel like much progress. However, I've now finished Chart 3, which means I only have two charts to go, and at least they're different (charts 1, 2 and 3 were very similar). And, even better, it doesn't have any bobbles. I have come to loathe the bobble. I don't mind fiddlly knitting, but I don't even really care that much for the final effect, so that was kind of frustrating. I could have substituted, done something else, saved myself from bobble hell, but I decided the bobbles were integral to the texture of the shawl so I did them as written.

I solemnly swear I will never bobble again.

I did actually lose quite a bit of knitting time on this trip. I don't think I knit at all once we got off the plane, until the day after Christmas when we left for the first 8 hours of driving. Even then, it took me a while into the trip to pick it up.

I have, my friends, discovered that it is possible to be too tired to knit. I was sick for the first part of my vacation, which accounted for some of it, but really, I wasn't feeling so lousy that there should have been that big of an issue. It wasn't the illness - I was just too darn tired. I always have a lot of commitments in December, and I really think I just overdid it. The end of 2011 was totally consumed with the Great Revamping Of My Life, and for once, I didn't have any energy left to create.

I'm starting to get my mojo back a little bit. There's still a lot to do and many, many demands on my time and energy, but I'm trying to make time - if for no other reason than I won't have a wedding shawl if I don't! (That's a lie. The members of Romi's group on Ravelry are awesome and I have had tons of offers to knit a shawl for me for the wedding, so I'm sure if I got worried, I could pass it off and have a finished version back in a week.)

Speaking of which, I've now arrived at the point in my Madrona shawl where I bind off half of the circle I've been making, and as planned, I've been adding crystals to the edge.




I have to admit, it's a lot of crystals, and the yarn in the shawl is already sparkly, so I was afraid of it being overkill - but oh, they're so pretty. When I pick up the shawl it glitters and shines, and compared to the crystals, the metallic thread in the yarn is downright subtle. I feel good about it. Except I miscounted the number of crystals I would need and I ran out before the bind off was finished. I have more on order, but this shawl is officially stalled until I receive them. Shipping is usually pretty quick, though, so I expect that by the time I have dedicated knitting time again, I'll have crystals. So many crystals.

Finding the Time

I feel like a broken record, coming here week after week to say "I haven't had time to do much, but here's what I have," but sadly it remains true! I'm cramming knitting time in between other things, and there are times when I'm just too tired to knit. But, I leave for my Christmas vacation next week, and there will be plenty of plane and car time for knitting, so I'm hoping I'll catch up some then!

In the meantime, I'm still managing to make progress in small spurts. Exhibit A - my wedding shawl.



I'm into chart C. This shawl is sort of like a diamond with rectangular panels attached to its top two sides. To achieve this, you start out in the round, and then cast off the bottom half of the diamond, put half the remaining stitches on holders, and knit the wings side to side. (I'm sure there's more to it than that, but I haven't gotten that far yet.) The cast off is done with the same crochet loops that Romi has used on some of her previous designs like Fiori. I've ordered some teardrop-shaped pendant crystals. I hope to put them on the little crochet loops - although examinations of the FOs posted to Ravelry at this point seem to suggest I might want to lengthen the chains slightly to accommodate this. I have two concerns with this plan: 1) Will the crochet chains fit through the holes on the crystals? 2) Will I look like I plundered a chandelier? But, there is no way to know except to knit, so the crystals are ordered. If I'm really lucky they'll get here in the next few days. I haven't decided whether I'm taking the shawl with me on my Christmas trip - I have some concerns about it getting dirty or messed up, or that the crystals won't arrive and I'll be stuck. Maybe I'll take the second skein of yarn with me and knit the lace strips I'm hoping to make to go on the bouquet on the trip. We'll see.

It's finally gotten cold here (mostly. the cold is very indecisive.) so I've been trying to finish out the third part of the matched set CodeNinja requested all that time ago.



Fingerless gloves. This pattern is Urban Necessity, which I have knit many, many times. I had the first glove all the way to the fingers when I decided it was too big and ripped the whole thing out to do the next size down. I'm not exactly sorry, since the fit is much, much better now, but - well. If I hadn't had to do that the gloves would be done. As it is, they are not done.



But I'm almost finished with the thumb gusset on the second one, so the end is in sight. Once I make it up to the fingers, the rest is fiddly, but quick. I did make one modification to the pattern this time around, which was to rib the ends of the fingers so that they don't roll back as they have in gloves past. It's a brilliant idea and I feel dumb for not thinking of it four pairs ago.

My office had a potluck and "dirty santa" exchange today, and though CodeNinja kindly took care of the potluck part for me, I failed to plan ahead on the dirty santa thing. So, last night at 11:30 p.m. I was sitting on my bed, frantically threading beads on metallic yarn to make this:



I would have started half an hour sooner but somehow the metallic yarn didn't end up with the rest of the yarn when we unloaded and sorted the craft room, so I was frantically dismantling the carefully sorted piles of stuff in my basement trying to find it. It was a risky move. I'm already tired and overall short on sleep, and to add to that, I stabbed myself rather brutally with the needle I was using to thread the beads while trying to dislodge one bead with a particularly small hole from the eye of the needle. That could have impacted my knitting capability for weeks, but it seems to be doing all right now, and I was able to solider on and complete the ornament shortly before 2 a.m. I'm somewhat consoled for my loss of sleep by the fact that the ornament hit the maximum three swaps in the dirty santa exchange, and, after a hard-fought battle, the winner was my boss.

I'm also slightly tickled by the fact that, out of sheer, blind coincidence, because the only thing I was thinking last night was "which ornament pattern has the fewest beads" and "anything but red, I'm so tired of red," I managed to do the ornament in our company colors. I was totally floored when someone congratulated my company spirit over it!