Saturday, July 31, 2010

Three Irish Girls

I've selected my first ever sock club yarn! I couldn't decide, so I got one of each! You can check out the colours on the Three Irish Girl's website. I should receive my shipment by the end of August. I cannot wait.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Winter Scarf 2010

I finally finished the baby blanket! It's shorter than it should be, but it's done! So I started the Ocean Waves Scarf, using Manos del Uruguay in Lava, and it's such an easy pattern! I've already done quite a bit in only 2 days (and one day I only did a few minutes and today I did about 20 minutes).



I think a hat from this pattern is going to work well, but the mittens might be tricky. I may have to make the "eyes" smaller.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Sock Club Fall 2010

I've decided not to join the Indigo Moon Yarns club this year, as it is not a sock club, but rather a yarn club. So, I looked at a few clubs, and really wanted a Canadian one (which I could not find - so if anyone knows of one, please let me know!), and one that ran for 3 months so I could try it out. I ended up joining the Sock Yarnista club put out by Three Irish Girls. The dyer is a woman named Sharon from Minnesota, and her yarns colourways are so nice! I get my first shipment in August, and I cannot wait!

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Yarn! Yarn! Yarn!

I'm back from my amazing trip to the Canadian Rockies, and I went a little crazy while in Canmore at the Knit & Caboodle yarn store, and bought a ton of sock yarn!

So it might not be too much to some... but 8 hanks of yarn (5 of them being sock yarn) is quite a lot to me. My favorites are the madelinetosh (DK) and Anzula Squishy. I plan to use the madeleinetosh to make a bulkier pair of socks, and 2 hanks to make the Ocean Waves Scarf with it.

As I was in the car on the way to the airport in Calgary the next day I realized I should have purchased enough to make a matching hat and mittens (I currently have no matching set). So, when I got home I checked where to purchase the yarn and discovered there was a store right in downtown Ottawa - Yarns etc. - so I bought 3 more hanks. The yarn is Manos del Uruguay, so there are no dye lots. The winter gear will be my next project. I have almost completed the baby blanket for my friend. I only have 5 more inches left!! I never realized how long it takes.

On the sock front I have completed 1 sock, which was too big for my foot. I was working with Patons Basic Sock Pattern from their Next Steps Four: Socks and Slippers. I used the smallest dimensions (I have small feet) and they were still too big. So I looked up a bunch of calculators and am trying a second sock. It's looking good so far except for two little holes on either side of my foot where I picked up stitches. I needed to have picked up 1 or 2 more and there would have been no hole!

I'd like to get a book which talks about sizing, because the math is too much for me sometimes. Any suggestions would be great. I thought about Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Sock Book, or Sock Innovation, but the reviews for them were not that great. Also, while Sock Innovation has beautiful patterns, a few reviews mentioned there was no information about sizing. I read a few reviews for the book Sock Club: Join the Knitting Adventure, and it sounds like it might be promising.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Crowsnest Pass

So I'm off to Crowsnest Pass for a wedding this weekend and then off to the Rockies for a week of camping! I am bringing my knitting with me, and I am determined to make a sock that fits me. I completed one, and lo and behold it is way too big (I have super tiny feet). So I am changing my strategy and will knit a pair of sockies as there will be less yarn to unravel if they don't fit! I'm off at 6am tomorrow morning!

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Aida, The Garden Fairy

I decided to post a photo of my largest and most complex cross-stitch ever done (to date). I completed this project in 2007, and it took me 3 years to do.

It is Mirabilia's Aida, The Garden Fairy #41 pattern by Nora Corbett, stitched on 32-count (or maybe it was 24-count?) Aida, with DMC floss, Kreinik metallic floss, and Mill Hill beads. I didn't use the recommended linen as I have never worked with it and wasn't sure if I could get my stitches even.

Here's some detail from the garland she is holding... many many beads were used in this pattern, small seed beads, glass beads of leaves and flowers and crystal ones of teardrops.
The next large one I will do of Mirabilia's will be Titania, Queen of the Fairies #38. It took me years to find a copy of this pattern, and I finally did when I visited Nanaimo, B.C. last year. I found it in a small shop called The Stitcher's Muse.