It may not look like my quilt has really grown any since last week but it has. Those little green squares take just about as much time to stitch on as the octagons!
I’m about half way through bobbin #2 of the Shoot roving.
My WIP Wednesday posts may be a little on the lite side for the next few weeks. I’m doing a bit of commission knitting and it’s a super secret project!
The quilt has a few more patches. I’ve also basted a boat load more patches in the new fabric. I hope to stitch these on this week.
I’ve knit almost through the greens.
I spun up the first bobbin of the Shoot roving and I’ve gotten the second one started.
I’ve cast on the yarn I dyed & spun earlier this year. I’m kind of just winging it for now to see what happens. I’ve got an idea in my head but I’m not quite sure it’s going to work out.
This is not quite a WIP just yet, but I’m going to spin this roving from Miss Babs as my next spinning project. It’s called Shoot and is 100% BFL. I’ve had this roving in my stash for at least 4 years, maybe more. I’m planning to spin it up fingering weight(ish) and knit a shawl with it since it is a monochrome color.
No quilt update this week; I was feverishly knitting all week. You’ll see why on Friday!
A couple of weeks ago, a super awesome lady requested that I make a book for her. I hope she’s as much in love with it as I am. By the way, this super awesome lady makes some pretty tasty tea: check her teas out over at Rare Meadow Tea.
The Midnight yarn is finished! This roving came from Spun Right Round and is merino. I absolutely loved spinning this; it is so soft! I have no idea what I’m going to make with it yet so for now I’ll just hug it and squeeze it (and call it George).
If you’ve been following the WIP Wednesday posts, you know that I’m working on the Hitchhiker shawl. I’m following the pattern as written except for at the beginning of each row 8, I’m adding a bead to the first stitch. Here’s one way of how to add beads to knitting:
I use a size US 14 (0.75 mm) steel crochet hook for beading. I find this size is suitable for both size 6 and size 8 seed beads.
Start by slipping a bead onto your hook.
Next, slip the crochet hook purl wise into the stitch.
Slip the stitch over to the crochet hook. This is the first stitch in this row and it has stretched the loop. Don’t worry, it will all go back in place in just a moment.
Hold the yarn in place with the hook then slip the bead off the hook and onto the stitch.
Slip the stitch back onto the left hand needle making sure not to twist the stitch.
Work the stitch as instructed. For this pattern, this stitch is purled.
The bead is now secured. Continue your pattern as written.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this edition of How To’s-Day!!
You may have noticed a sudden influx of blog posts after being dormant for so long and that the blog has had a bit of a makeover. I’ve recently changed jobs. I now work much closer to home and have more time to focus on my own work again. I hope to get back into the swing of things and back to posting on a more regular basis.
Now on to the WIP’s!
I’m knitting a second Hitchhiker shawl. I’m finally getting to use one of the skeins of Wollmeise that I’ve been hording for a couple of years. I’m modifying the pattern again by adding beads to each point. I’m up to 15 of 42 points.
I’ve also been on a spinning kick lately. It could be because my spinning wheel is sitting nearly directly in front of the air conditioner. I’m spinning a merino roving called Midnight that I got for my birthday 2.5 years ago from Spun Right Round. It’s amazingly soft.
The Fibonacci Shawlette was previously exclusively available in a kit but it is now available for purchase online! You can purchase the pattern through my Ravelry store or through the Etsy store.
What can I say, I’m a math nerd. The Fibonacci Sequence is a set of numbers where the next number in the sequence is created by adding the two preceding it. (0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13….) The color changes in this shawl represent the 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, & 13 of the Fibonacci Sequence.
I hope you enjoy knitting this shawl, even if you aren’t a big fan of math and numbers.
This shawl is made using two 100 gram skeins of worsted weight yarn. One solid and one hand-dyed or variegated. Suggested needle size US 11 (8 mm). I made the one pictured using a skein from Unplanned Peacock and a cotton cashmere blend from Plymouth.
Great pattern for a first time shawl!
A couple of months ago, I tried my hand at dying wool again. I used food coloring and vinegar and followed the instructions for developing a color pallet in the book Hand Dying Yarn & Fleece. I spun the batch up yesterday and now I’m contemplating a design for it.
Here’s a blurry photo of the roving drying after I dyed it.
I recently designed this shawl for A Likely Yarn using Unplanned Peacock‘s Merino Worsted and Plymouth Yarn‘s Vita (Recycled cotton/Recycled cashmere). The pattern is currently exclusively available at A Likely Yarn in the Fun Stripes Kit but I plan to release the pattern to the public in the future. This shawl is a super fast knit on US 11 needles!
Links go to the Ebay listings:
Malabrigo Worsted in Black – 1 skein
Knit Picks Shadow in Cattail – 3 skeins
Cherry Tree Hill Cotton/Rayon – 2 skeins
Super soft novelty yarn – 3 skeins
Punta Yarns Mericash Solid – 3 skeins
Malabrigo Worsted in Molly – 1 skein
Cascade Yarns Alpaca Lace – 2 skeins
Plymouth Yarn Alpaca Prima – 1 skein
Universal Yarns Soleil – 3 skeins – 3 colors
Classic Elite Yarn Wool Bam Boo – 1 skein
Elsebeth Lavold Bambool – 1 skein
Zealana Kiwi (merino/cotton/possum) – 1 skein
Gedifra Extra Soft Merino – 1 skein
Zealana Eco (merino/possum) – 1 skein
Nashua Handknits Ivy – 1 skein
Nashua Handknits Velvet Wool – 1 skein
Plymouth Yarn Galway Chunky – 1 skein
Handspun Superwash Merino – 2 skeins
Plymouth Encore – 92% of a skein
Brown Sheep Nature Spun Sport – 1 skein
I also still have a small bit of yarn left on my Ravelry Destash Page that has not gone on Ebay yet.
EDIT: This yarn was relisted from last week: Araucania Nature Wool Chunky – 1 skein
Paper Kitty 