squirrely

I opened a birthday present early. 

I've been watching all of Arne and Carlos's YouTube videos lately. They are just a hoot and a half, and I love their approach to knitting: "does it work? does it look ok? then that's how you do it!" They've certainly given me the gumption to try some things that I thought were too hard (ahem, fair isle mittens) and have woken up the creative bug again. This book of Christmas balls (julekuler) is one of their first to be published, and I have been eyeing it ever since I watched their tutorial video. Dave's parents sent it to me. 

When it came in the mail I went out and got some red and white yarn so I could get started. They look really fiddly, but if your'e comfortable on double pointed needles then you've got the hardest part down. They definitely benefit from being steam pressed - don't be skipping that step. I did a lower temperature press because this yarn is acrylic, but it still smoothed out lumps and bumps. Stuffing and finishing is very easy to do despite the fact that it seemed confusing when I read it. Watch the tutorial. 

The first pattern I chose was the squirrel because Dave has been requesting we do a "woodland creatures" theme for our holiday decorating for the last couple of years. I think we might be able to oblige this year! These are super addictive and I'm really looking forward to making more of these. I already know which one I'm doing next. What I really like about this book is, similar to their overall goals as designers, they have included traditional motifs as well as some quirkier and more modern designs so I both learn something about Norwegian knitting and also get to have some fun. More to come!

another kind of stitching

One of the first crafts I can remember learning from my mom was cross stitch. I've done quite a bit of it in the past and finished some pretty cool looking pieces. My favorite was a clownfish in an anemone that I made for my grandpa. It took forever! But it looked so cool. It's not something we see very often anymore, but I have noticed it more and more recently - especially witty motifs in small hoops. Maybe some of those will have to make their way onto my walls!

Along with the unfinished felt embroidery I found in the storage ottoman, I also found a small cross stitch project that was nearly finished. This is one of those wall hanging pieces stitched on plastic canvas. All I needed to do was cut it out, make the red cording, and assemble all the pieces. Quickest finish of the year!

Having gotten a taste of it again, I went looking in my closet for more. It is a great break from knitting for my hands while still giving me something to do in the evenings. I found a couple of options, including some Christmas ornament kits, but I settled on this non-holiday project. 

This is a kit I remember my grandmother giving me. It is a scene of a shelf full of Victorian items. She had already sorted and labeled the thread and started it, but did not want to keep working on it. She did the swan, and now I get to add on the rest! It's a pretty special find, and one that I'll enjoy working on in the months to come. Witty avocado pictures will have to wait. 

freja

I was right, my favorite part of these mittens are the fussy little thumb motifs. I think I like the on on the right best (the one with the thumb not flipped down), but they are both pretty awesome, nonetheless. 

I knew I needed to block the mittens when they were done, but I wasn't sure quite how. Some determined searching online got me all sorts of information on blocking techniques for mittens, but the simplest sounding one was the following: cut cardboard to appropriate sizes and cover with packing tape. 

It may look a little funny, but it certainly worked like a charm. My tension wasn't that bad (if I do say so myself), but the curlicue motif on the back of the hand especially was a little bit lumpy and uneven in places. Now? You'd hardly know it. Blocking is magic. 

Also good to know is that blocking helps stranded knitting grow. I was a little concerned that the mittens were snug on my hands when I got them off the needles. Trying to avoid the same issue I had with my last socks being a little big, I thought I'd erred and gone too small. But once these were dunked in water, the yarn got so soft and stretchy that I was almost worried they'd be too big! 

I was very gentle when putting the blocking templates in, especially making sure to not stretch out the ribbing too badly, and then I worked the fabric up and down rather than stretching side to side in order to even out the stitches. After a few days of drying out, I tried them on and they fit like a glove! Well, a mitten. 

Pattern: Freja by Emmy Petersson - free on Ravelry (my Ravelry page)

Needle: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)

Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn Sock in 'Lettuce' and Serendipidye King's Mountain Sock in 'Claret'

spoooooky stashing

Scary how yarn just ends up in your stash, isn't it?? :) (Ok so that's a little bit of a stretch, but it's Halloween!) 

While we were away in Kentucky, I kept my eyes peeled for local yarn stores to visit. I was not disappointed! ReBelle in Lexington was a cute house jam packed with yarn in each of its little rooms. I would have loved to move in there and knit all the things. They also had a great selection of mugs, notions, and other fun items as well as many inspiration pieces knitted up to showcase the yarns. I purchased the yarn below, malabrigo arroyo in 'pleiades', for a hat I will be making to have one of my very own of something I saw knitted up in the store. A great way to get people to buy yarn, no? I'm also going to note here (so I don't forget the yarn) that they had a luxurious selection of Cascade Eco Plus wool that was SO SOFT. I didn't get any, but I sure wanted to. I did get a really squishy skein of lavender Cascade alpaca though. Couldn't put it down. 

The second place we found was in a cute little downtown on Main Street in LaGrange. Friends and Fiber is more of a typical storefront, also jam packed with a great selection of yarn. The thing I liked the best about this place was the gaggle of people in there knitting together. The shopkeeper let us know that there was a big group in there most days - it seemed like a great community. There were yarns I hadn't ever seen before in this shop, and a sale rack with epic markdowns. Those fuchsia skeins there were half off, alpaca, and sparkly - how could I not? And the variegated skein came off a stack of just fantastically vibrant sock yarns that were hand dyed in Turkey. I am going to have an epic pair of socks from that one. Last but not least, the pompom will be destined for the aforementioned hat. Navy poof on navy speckled fabric? Yes please.

I'm really happy to have found a couple of local yarn shops to frequent on our trips back to visit Dave's folks! I prefer to go to get yarn in person to shopping online. Not only does it make it easier to choose yarns since I like to feel textures and see colors in person, but it keeps alive the type of shop, craft, and creative community that I think every town needs. Three Bags Full is where I will go back to when I visit my folks, Uncommon Threads and Fengari are my local haunts here in California, and I always keep my eyes open whenever we travel to get a special fiber memento of the trip when I can. 

So, while it's "scary" that my stash is growing again... I'm supporting local shops and I'm certain I'm up to the challenge!

hand stitched

Monday Night Football and embroidery? Sure, why not! I went rummaging through the little storage ottoman in our living room and found this gem at the bottom. I had the felt flowers attached and embroidered a little bit of the chain stitch vines, but not much else. It was looking sort of empty, so I got my creative juices flowing and added some more while the game was on.

I'm pretty sure I started this before this blog even started... 2011? 2010? At any rate, a long time ago. The background is just three scraps of fabric I sewed together and the flowers I cut out and embellished freehand. The embroidered curlicues are a fun whimsical finish, and I even managed to stitch a couple of flower buds in them. I just need to trim and fix the fabric in the hoop and then decide if I want a ruffle around it or not. Maybe? Not sure yet, but super happy with the stitching! A fun relaxing evening.

tangerine

Yep, more leftovers. These are lovely alpaca blend yarns leftover from a scarf gift a couple Christmases ago. I thought a logical follow up to all the mittens I've been knitting lately would be hats. Of course this doesn't match any of the mittens I've made but that isn't the point, is it? This project was a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon. 

I really wanted to make a hat with a contrast double brim. I'm not sure where I got this idea but it got in my head and wouldn't go anywhere even when it got hard to find a pattern. I blame Pinterest, probably fair. I did eventually find a pattern ("A Very PDX Hat") on Ravelry. Truth be told, working the first rows in the round off of the provisional cast on was a royal pain in the rear but the brim turned out looking so great that I'll just have to suffer through again on another hat. It's just too cool. Maybe it was that my circulars were a little too long, hard to say. Or maybe it really is just a pain in the butt. Either way, the result was worth it. 

I thought I would settle in to make the whole thing in the barley color with the peachy inner brim and that would be it. Then I thought maybe I'd just do the whole thing in stockinette instead of the PDX ribbed pattern to keep it simple, and I'd put a navy pompom on top. But then I've been on a stranded knitting kick lately, haven't I? And there is that very pretty dark orange begging to be used. So here we have the mashup of two patterns, one for the band pattern and the other to tell me how to shape the hat. I was trying to make a fitted beanie for myself so I was conservative on how long to go before the crown decreases. Silly me, I tried it on and it fit just ok instead of great so I ended up ripping back and adding another inch. Then of course, it was a little more slouchy than I wanted. Never happy!

'

The real irony is that Dave came home at that point and commented how nice it looked, so I let him try it on. It fit perfectly. Guess who is getting another hat? And there goes the navy pompom idea down the drain. Really it tickles me that he likes it so much, so it's no problem at all. I was tempted to cast on for another, but matching hats might be a little bit much, even for us. Maybe I'll just borrow it once in a while!

Pattern: A Very PDX Hat (shaping and brim) and Magnus' Hat (band pattern) - my Ravelry page

Needles: US 7 and US 8

Yarn: Berocco Ultra Alpaca in 'Grove Mix', 'Persimmon', and 'Barley'

tatooine

Before we headed out for our week in Kentucky, I did manage to find a project to get started that could come on the trip with me. I have had this pretty variegated yarn in my stash for a while now - pretty sure Dave's mom bought the two skeins for me. I left on day one with this...

...and came back a week later with a mostly finished project. It took just a couple more days to finish the last few rows. It doesn't really need a blocking, but I might do it just to see if that helps the top edge stop curling under. 

When I was looking around for projects to pair with this yarn, another person on Ravelry had made this shawl with this exact yarn. It looked so nice from her photos that I decided it was the thing to make. I'm sure this would have knitted up nicely too, but the yarn suits the crochet stitches so well. I think it must be the silk in the blend as well as the lovely muted colors that makes it look the way it does. The word I keep thinking of is "creamy". 

The original pattern does not call for the shell edging but I liked the way it looked on the inspiration project, so shells we have. They finish off the whole thing really nicely and I think will help the way it drapes by giving more weight to the edge. I originally thought this was just a gray and beige mix, which made me think of the sandy planet Tatooine in Star Wars (it also helped that the original crocheter called hers Clone Wars - word association anyone?), but looking closely the grays also include some blue-ish and purple-ish hues as well. Is it really a muted rainbow and not a sandy planet? Still, Aunt Beru's drink she served at breakfast was kind of a blue-ish/purple-ish color from what I can remember, and the twin moons were certainly that pretty dusty orange, so Tatooine it is. 

Pattern: Wrap Me in Ice Cream Shawl (my Ravelry page)
Hook: US H (5 mm)
Yarn: Knitting Fever Indulgence 6 ply w/ Silk in '10'