Books and patterns oh my!

Here I sit at the laptop looking at tons and tons of new patterns on Ravelry! How can I not? There are so many awesome designers out there these days. That is one of the wonderful things about Ravelry, how it gives creative people a way to make their patterns available to other creative people.
So never mind the fact that I have many many pages of queued patterns in Ravelry, I might have added a few more today *grin*.
Here are a few of the ones I might have just added:

• Workhouse Mitts - I love the simple elegance of these. Fingering weight, not too fussy but still nice. I may have to push these to the top of the queue!
• Jenolan Shawlette - this immediately caught my eye! I love a simple shawl (for Lilly-girl), and one that isn't out of lace/fingering weight is a bonus for me! This one is out of DK and has just enough lace to make it pretty. Really like it!
• IceBerry Mittens, IceBerry Hat - I simply must mention these. The designer is a wonderful lady and she comes up with such beautiful designs!! I love the option on the hat to allow it to fit over a ponytail! So fun.
• Lenore - I'm not sure what it is about this one that has caught my eye but I was immediately taken with it. I'm sure the color is part of it, but I think the flowy lines really draw my eye.

So many pretties to choose from! Is it any wonder my queue grows so quickly?? I think not.

Perhaps after I have tamed the wild Darling Hubby sweater I'll be able to devote some time to a sweater for me. What am I saying? The instant I have needles free something for the Lilly-girl goes right on them. *smile* But I am going to work on that this year...actually of things actively being worked on only one of them (the hitchhiker) is for her, so that isn't too bad.

As everyone who knows me just a little is aware of...I tend to get very deeply involved in whatever my current interest is. When I was a scrapbooker I spent ALL my extra time with scissors, glue and paper. When I started knitting I immediately began my mad rush into all things fibery. From knitting I headed strait into dyeing yarn & fiber, spinning, weaving and of course what could follow that but raising my own sheep, rabbits and/or goats! I haven't quite made it to the livestock yet but it is the goal. Between wanting the livestock and learning all I can about spinning The Fleece & Fiber Sourcebook became a must!
Mom & I attended Sock Summit in Portland together this past July (2011) and came across this book - WOW. It has so much information in it - talk about overload (in the best way possible). Mom surprised me with a copy of it after we returned home (too big & heavy to lug on the plane home). I haven't had a chance to read through the entire book as of yet (it is really big, did I mention that yet?) but there is just so much information. It covers sheep, goats, alpacas, llamas, camels, bison, must oxen, yaks and more! The book has sections that are divided by family: Dorset, English Longwool Family, Merino Family, etc. And within those sections are the individual sheep breeds. For the breeds it gives history, facts about the fiber (from staple length to diameter, colors, characteristics, etc.). There are pictures of the locks (raw & clean), spun fiber different ways, knit swatches. Just a tons of information. I am really looking forward to getting familiar with more breeds of wool producing critters!!
I can just see myself with a sheep farm (okay, maybe not, 2 acres isn't really big enough for an entire farm). Well in my dreams I can at least.
We have taken the kids to wool festivals and they just love the sheep. Last summer they were able to help shear a sheep, comb the wool and spin it. Then they were allowed to use a loom for weaving. They loved it all! Seems to me it is time for them to learn about skirting and cleaning it *very big grin*
Okay, enough rambling on my part. If you are interested in learning about the properties of different wools go get this book *wink* I think I am going to get back to reading it myself.
Have a great day!

And the winner is....

BEA the Basement Monster!!!!

Yes, poor Baldwin the bathroom monster did not receive even one vote...wonder if it is the bathroom association *grin*. So Miss Bea was started yesterday. I hope hope hope that I have enough of the chosen yarn. Miss Bea has decided she wants to be purple and pink. What a pretty monster she should be, though she isn't really much to look at yet...


So, as you may recall if you read Friday (sister dear - hee hee) I posted knitting goals for the weekend. And I knocked them out of the park baby!!! Woohooooo. Okay, so maybe I didn't really do much of anything else...but still. A little props? Please?
Okay...here we go.

Multnomah - FINISHED! I even blocked it! Yay me *big grin*. It is currently in the possession of Princess Lilly-Girl.
Pattern: Multnoman
Yarn: Grant Creek Yarns, Merino/Cashmere/Nylon blend in the Raspberry Mint colorway (luv!)



Darling Hubby's Basket weave scarf - The goal was to add 2 inches. I added 7.5 inches!! Yay! It is currently a whopping 16 inches long....and I have to go to NINETY inches. Yay, almost there....or something like that. But he loves it and it will keep his yummy neck so toasty warm so that is what matters.



Hitchhiker Scarflette for the Knitgirllls KAL (knit-a-long) - the goal was to add one point to the shawl... and I added 3 (I think, I forget what it was at). It has a total of 14 points now. The pattern calls for 42 total (hitchhiker, get it??) but the skein of yarn I have will not stretch that far so I'll work til I have no more yarn. Not sure exactly how many points that will get me. It's coming along quite nicely though.




Then I had a spinning goal of at least 10 minutes each day. Managed to do that as well. Yay! I will talk more about that later in the week...hopefully be able to get some pretty pictures.


And then the lovely Bea Monster...
Not much to look at yet is she? *grin* But hopefully she will come along nicely too...though she is a monster...so maybe not...




Maybe I should make an egg laying monster? We have new chickens (new being subjective, they were all born this past spring) and they are just starting to lay on a semi regular schedule. Perhaps a little monster that perches in the rafters of the hen house to remind them that they need to lay eggs? Or maybe a basket...I still don't have an egg basket to gather eggs in...Maybe I should knit & felt a basket. Anyone know of a good basket pattern?
There is some pretty sunshine out right now and the hens and the pretty rooster are out scratching in the mud and enjoying the sun. It's so nice to be able to sit and see them enjoying the outdoors. Rhode Island Reds are quite pretty! If you are ever in the market for hens they are a nice one. Lay well (I'm told), pretty to look at and friendly. We call one of our sons the Chicken Whisperer because he has them so used to him that they sometimes climb right on his shoulder from the roosting post *grin*. It's a fun experience for the kids, and we get eggs from it. Works for me.


So, that's the update after this weekend. Time to get moving along. Have a lovely Monday!

Weekend plans. Help me decide. **and a little enabling**

Wow! It happened again! The week had just flown by. Where does the time go? Just another couple of weeks and this year will be gone forever. (that's a little depressing)
On a happy note, I found a stack of knitting and spinning magazines piled in a corner of my craft room today *grin*. I do believe that this weekend I will look through them and decide which ones to keep and which ones to give away. It's always fun to look through them again, specially when it has been a while.
So, no unusual plans here this weekend. Just the usual relaxing weekend we usually have in the winter. Hopefully lots of knitting. My projects seem to be piling up like crazy the last few days. Though it is possible that some of it is completely in my head and not actual projects yet *laugh*.

One of the things I'm thinking of starting is a Knitted Monster from the Rebecca Danger book, The Big Book of Monsters. I've had the book for several months and keep wanting to make one so I finally decided I am going to! Why not, right? These critters are just SOOOO darn cute! How can I resist? SO while trying to decide which one to do I realized that there are two of them whose names start with B - perfect for fitting in the stash down A to Z group, December being the letter B. Yay!!!! Love it when things work so well like that!!
However, I have a small dilema...which one to make?? We have:

• Baldwin the bathroom monster
• Bea the basement monster

Both are uber de duber cute! Both start with the letter B! Both would be equally loved by some little person in my house....Ack! Dilemma dilemma. So, help me decide. Leave a comment on this post telling me which one you think I should do. I'll count them up Sunday morning some time when I am ready to start the little monster. Yay!!

So other weekend knitting & spinning plans so far are:

1. Finish the Multnomah!! I have either 4 or 8 rows left - depends on the amount of yarn. Should be an easy finish...right? Right? Good.
2. Put at least 2 inches on Darling Hubby's Basketweave Scarf.
3. One point on the hitchhiker scarflette for the knitgirllls KAL.
4. Spin at least 10 minutes each day - see how much of my LOOP batt I can get spun! *luv*
5. And of course the "B" monster - at least start.

Some other things that are floating through my head - cause you know you are curious about what's up there *wink*...

• Hat for my sister - have the yarn all picked out...have had for nearly 2 months (oops)
• Hat for her husband - (my sister has a husband, still getting used to that)
• Hat for one of the boys from my handspun
• Socks for my Darling Hubby - though this one will wait til next year at least
• Bel Cloche - for Lilly-girl. Would fit in with B month for Stash down A - Z.
  

Ahhh, I know there are more but that is what is coming to mind at the moment...

Oh, another piece of fun news! I'm sure it comes as no surprise to anyone who has been reading here that I LOVE (great big pink hearts of love) Three Irish Girls yarn. Yummy bases, gorgeous colors, smart & beautiful proprietress....TIG just has it all going on. Anywho, yesterday, today and through the weekend is the Three Irish Girls end of the year sale! Excess (ready to ship) yarns are listed on the Yarnista's blog here and it becomes a great big free for all to get lots of yummy yarny goodness. I am doing my best to be good and not buy everything *wink* like I usually do. SO jump on over there and keep an eye out for yummy deals! Also there is a thread on the TIG Ravelry forum where everyone is egging on everyone else and just having a good ol' time. So if you are looking for some fun it's a great place to be.

I think that is everything going on here today. Not too much (is it nap time yet??). We shall see just how much progress I make this weekend and if I finish anything I'll be sure to try to get pics for next week - assuming weather/lighting cooperate.

Have a lovely weekend everyone!!! (buy lots of pretty yarn!)

Pretending it's Tuesday...

As usual time has gotten completely away from me, again. Guess that just means my life is full. A good thing.
Tuesday I was going to post a couple of magazine reviews...and then I picked up new magazines last night while at the grocery...so maybe I'll review those instead.

I picked up three magazines:

• Knit 'N Style February 2012
• Interweave Knits Winter 2011
• knitsimple winter 2011

Lots of fun!!!

Where to start...well how about Knit 'n Style since it is first in the list.

There is a really neat cardi vest on the front page. Probably not one I'd wear but it still looks really neat to me. I love the sideways construction! Actually without the art yarns I would probably wear it happily.

There are always lots of patterns in the Knit 'n Style magazines that appeal to me. This one is no different. An interesting thing about this magazine is that it also contains patters that are crochet as well as a couple for machine knitting! Neat! Love variety!

So among the beautiful patterns in this issue are Scalloped Mini Shawl - a pretty feather and fan pattern. Shoulder Shawlette - a lacy and dainty shawlette that I can completely see on a friend at church (Marissa - you need to learn to knit in your 'free' time). Woven Cable Shawl - very pretty and has a handy loop on the front to pull the other size through so keep it pulled together...I can see myself making this for my grandmother (though don't let that lead you to think it looks anything other than stylish - cause she rocks!), though I'm not sure about the cables, very beautiful though. The Skinny Stripes Shawl is SO going on my to knit list - going to put my little sticky tab right on that page....oh sticky tab, where are you....there, done. Need to find some pretty self striping yarn in my stash (or dye some). This one is just so perfect for Lilly-girl. I am not a cape/capelet person but the Viennese Capelet is really appealing to me. The Casual Men's Polo is REALLY appealing as well...perhaps when I have Darling Hubby's sweater finished and have had some recovery time I'll have to consider it...I really think it would look lovely on him. Buttonless Jacket is so pretty. I love the simple style, it would go with anything. And there are so many more that I haven't mentioned. Definitely lots of patterns in this one.

This time there is also an article about Yarn Substitution - things to think about when using a yarn other than what is called for in the pattern. Very handy information!!

Next, Interweave Knits. There is a GORGEOUS sweater on the front of this one. A friend brought this one to my attention and put this magazine on my must get list for this issue. Briar Rose Tunic is the name of this one. Just WOW. I don't know if it is the lines, the cable, the color, or a combination of it all. Anyone want to volunteer to knit this for me? *grin* Gorgeous! Also in this issue (as if it needed anything else??) is an article by Eunny Jang about cables. Looks very informative (going to have to read it when the kids are quiet). Several interesting sweater patterns are in this issue. They have a retro look about them. Also in this issue is a cute pattern for slippers. If they were sized for toddlers I'd make them for Lilly-girl. The fabled cardigan is another that I just love! I totally see myself making this one for Lilly-girl. I'm not a lover of making cables but it is just so pretty, and it is out of bulky yarn! SO I do believe it is a must. Lots and lots of cable patterns in this magazine this time.

Third is the Knitsimple magazine. I love looking at the book reviews in this magazine. A couple that caught my eye were The Knitter's Life List, Knitted Dinosaurs and the novels How to knit a heart back home/Wishes & stitches. This issue includes a couple of afghan patterns (knit & crochet), lots of sweaters, some shawls...the Triangle lace shawl and the textured shawl both look pretty & cozy. A few matching sets caught my eye, mittens, cowls, etc. Again several pretty items!! Though the granny square skirt is not one that is going to make it to the top of my list. *grin*

So lots and lots of great new patterns have been released in this bunch of mgazines! I am looking forward to casting some of these on!!

Monday Sharing.

Unfortunately for me there was a limited amount of knitting over the weekend. My arm seems to be suffering from overuse so I gave it a rest on Saturday (it is the Sabbath after all). Sunday it had recovered enough that I was able to do a little knitting, though I tried to not get to carried away.

So that means I didn't make as much progress as I had hoped. I did get a few repeats done on Lilly-girl's Multnomah. Hopefully I will be able to share some pictures soon of that. (Must find camera cord!) I believe I have 5 repeats (4 rows each) left to do if my yarn yardage holds out. Yeah!!! Getting close! I have really enjoyed knitting this :)
If you need an easy and relatively quick shawl knit - this one gets two thumbs up!

Next on the needles is the Hitchhiker for the Knitgirllls KAL. I haven't worked on this one in probably a week or more. I have 10 or 11 of the points done, there are supposed to be 42 (the answer to everything). So I am a quarter of the way there (never mind that fact that the rows get longer as you go). This is another I think will go really fast, when I actually work on it *grin*.

New on the needles is a Basket weave scarf for Darling Hubby. He needs a new scarf to go with his new winter coat so here we go. It also just happens to go along with the Stash Down A to Z this month - the letter B. Good project for low concentration times like watching tv, in town or overseeing school.

Sitting on the back burner for now is Darling Hubby's sweater (boohoooo), the beautiful What Cheer! sweater for Lilly-girl (Which at this rate will be too small by the time it is finished, double boohoo), and two pairs of socks (hopefully for me).

Well, thankfully it is not January yet so me casting on the scarf (and possibly a Bel Cloche) does not go against my goals for next year. And if all goes according to plan the scarf, multnomah and cloche will all be done before the new year. Would be nice to have Darling Hubby's sweater done as well, but since that one is still an unknown...just not sure.

What's on your needles? What fun knitting did you get to do over the weekend?

Knitting goals...decided (probably).

As I mentioned before, coming up with knitting goals is really hard for me. I do not want them to be something so specific that they stifle all creativity, but if there isn't some kinda of point to them then, well what's the point.
So after much deliberation I think I have finally come up with some reasonable goals for my knitting/fiber arts in 2012.

1. Spin for 10 minutes a day (more is great).
2. Knit from stash - don't order new yarn for projects if it can be helped.
3. Knit patterns from books already in my library.
4. Knit for more people than just Lilly-girl (even though she is the smallest/fastest knits)
5. Try to keep WIP's and UFO's down to no more than 3 at a time.
6. Really stop to think twice and thrice before ordering new yarn/fiber.

These goals seem entirely reasonable and responsible to me (at least right now they do). That should make it easier to keep on the straight and narrow....right? RIGHT? Come on people, be supportive. *grin*

Perhaps I'll get really industrious and check to see if all my Ravelry stash is accounted for and that all the mostly used skeins are marked correctly so that I can actually track how many skeins I really do use/add over the course of the next year. That would be fun....as long as I stick to it, otherwise it could be depressing.

So, what kinds of goals are YOU going to have for the following year?

Sidetracked again!

Yesterday was a day of being sidetracked. First one thing and then another.
One of those things was finding out that the new Knitty is out! It's always so fun to heck out the new pattern releases. Unfortunately not many of the patterns really interested me this time - lots of beautiful items, just not ones I'd make. Some of the really pretty ones to me are the Alata sweater and the Grace socks.

Today continued with the distractions. These were all great distractions though! In October Three Irish Girls released a limited edition set of colorways to honor the King & Queen of Norway and their trip to Minnesota! ( you can read about that here on the Yarnista's blog) I was able to order some of them!! And they arrived today. YUM! Yes that is all I can say!
My most favorite one is Point Park Lilacs. Gorgeous!


Is that not absolutely gorgeous? Well I think it is. I am leaning towards using three of the skeins (On springvale super, worsted weight, superwash base) for a Cali Cargo dress for Lilly-girl. Hopefully I can find a semi-solid in my stash of the appropriate weight to put with it for the trim. I think she would like that and it would be oh-so-cute!

Another distraction that occurred today - also in the form of yarn - is that I received an order from the Net Loft, a delightful little store in Cordova, Alaska. They have some beautiful colorways dyed by Three Irish Girls that are specific to their store only. The colorways are based on local icons, flowers, etc. My most recent purchase from there is the beautiful Cordova Flora minskein set. Eight miniskeins in a mix of colors that represent their local flora. So pretty! I am thinking I will use them for socks and/or a shawl for Lilly-girl. They are really bright and colorful. Perfect for a little girl who has her very own sense of style! If you are on facebook you can "like" The Net Loft and see some of the Three Irish Girls colorways they have had dyed.

Well, I was going to review my newer magazines but since Knitty provided the first distraction and I gave a very short review of that I think I will hold off on the magazines. Save them for another day.

In personal knitting news I finished the garter section of the Multnomah I was working on and am ready to stat the feather & fan portion of it. I don't know if I'll get that set up with markers and start it or if I'll dig out the trim I need to start the Cali Cargo dress....that is really calling to me.
Happy knitting to you!!

A quick catch up.

Wow! I can not believe it is December already! How does that happen??

Unfortunately I did not get Darling Hubby's sweater done by Thanksgiving! SO sad! I was moving along making tons of great progress - front done, back done, sleeves done...when it occured to me that the sleeves did not look like they were going to fit. Do a quick measure...nope, definitely not going to be the baggy sweater he was asking for! ARGH! So I stopped after finishing the sleeves. I am going to have to wash it and block it all out to see if I get any growth (I don't think I will, the swatch did not). Then I will have to consult some very smart knitting brains (with way more experience than I myself have) and see what can be done.

In the meantime I was able to finish the test knit I was working on and it has been published, so I can share!!
The pattern is called Anadara. It is a beautiful shawl. I'm not much of one for knitting fingering weight shawls but I HAD to test knit this pattern. It's beautiful and designed by my friend - so what else could I do. If you are looking for a quick and easy knit - maybe something to do as a gift - you should really check it out! And if you want to knit it with others there is a Knit-a-long that has been started on the SPAllison group on Ravelry here.
And my finished Anadara:



I used Three Irish Girls club colorways, Sproutling & Beach Cottage, in the Velvet Sock base.
They were quite lovely to work with. A skein of each was sufficient with some of the semi-solid left.
Lilly-girl loves it! She even slept in it the first night after it was blocked.

So after I finished that another friend asked if I'd like to test knit a baby doll piece - I did, of course! It was an uber fast knit. When she releases it I'll post it here as well.

Then I spent a little time working on the Multnomah in Raspberry Mint (Grant Creek Yarns). It is coming along quite well. But once again it has been put back on the back burner.

And on December 1st I stated the KnitGirllls knit-a-long using Cloudlover's Haunted Vineyard colorway. I'm making the Hitchhiker shawlette. I have about 10 points done. The first ones move really fast. The one skein of yarn I bought will not make the 42 points, but that's okay as it is for Lilly-girl anyhow. This too has been pushed aside though.

Another friend has a test knit that I'm going to be working on. I need to start on it right away. First the dreaded gauge swatch. Nah, it will not be too bad. Actually it might be even pleasant. I'm using Three Irish Girls Wexford yarn base - a blend of silk and wool. Yummy! It has the most dreamy sheen/glow to it! LOVE it!

So that is what I've been up to.
When I arrived home from Kentucky there were lots of bags of yarn and fiber waiting for me at my desk! So much yumminess.

I will be sure to try to write frequently again now that I am back.
Perhaps next time I'll review the magazines I just bought.
Have fun knitting!