Flashing the Stash--The Final Frontier

In my living room--

In my knitting bag--

Soon to be stashed, but unable to appear: some additional skeins of Brooklyn Handspun sock yatn, and more yarn from kpixie.

And to think, I felt like I didn't have very much. I believe it may be time for a yarn diet.

Flashing the Stash--Installment #4

Yes, it appears I am a yarn whore.

Flashing the Stash--Installment #3

My son's closet (ps: he never ever complains!)

flashing the Stash--Installment #2

In the drawer, in my knitting room--

In the bedroom--

On the floor in my knitting room--

Flashing the Stash--Installment #1

Okay, you know you may have a bit too much yarn when blogger teeters on the edge of crashing becuase I have tried to upload too many photos. So this is coming to you in multi-post-installments:
This is the yarn that makes its home in my knitting room----




The stuff on the "top shelf"-----it is top shelf!

yarn + needles + 1 hour (and a wee bit more) =

Immediate knitting gratification and a check-off on the to-do list!

I whipped these booties up in no time flat, using a sample mini-skein which Flying Fingers sent to me with my Karabella Yarn order. The yarn is Roxanne'’s Mohair from Hopyard Spinnery. I am not sure of the colourway, but let's just say it, reminds me of Monet. The pattern was the combination of a few patterns I looked at.
Monet Mohair Booties
gauge = 4 stitches/6 rows per inch, on size 5 needles.
to knit . . .
Cast on 15 stitches. Row 1: K7, pm, K1, pm k7.
Row 2: K1, M1, K to m, M1, slip m, K1, slip m, M1, K to last stitch, M1, K1 (19 stitches)
Rows 3 & 4: repeat row 2 (27 stitches)
Rows 5-8: Remove markers, work in garter stitch
Row 9: K10, K2tog, pm, K3, pm, K2tog, K10 (25 stitches)
Row 10: K to 2 stitches before the marker, K2tog, sm, K3, sm, K2tog, K to the end (23 stitches)
Row 11: Knit
Repeat rows 10 & 11 4 more times (15 stitches). Then, work in K1P1 ribbing for 2 inches. Bind off loosely in ribbing pattern.
to finish . . .
With yarn, sew the back and foot seam. Soak booties in cool water, with a bit of shampoo with hair conditioner (it will make the yarn really soft), rinse and pat dry. Stuff each bootie with small bits of plastic grocery bags for shaping. When dry, sew a ribbon, or another knid of doo-dad in top of the booties!
ps: I think that I have had enough of a break from the Sunrise Circle Jacket. –Casting on for the right sleeve sometime before the end of the weekend . . . I hope!

Knit the Classics Mystery Swap Pal Stash Arrives!

Hug and more hugs to Alexis for the lovely goodies which appeared in the mail today. As you can see, I received some daffodil colored, Patons sock yarn, some lovely soap, a candle, some candies and of course the "I haven't read mystery" A Great Deliverance by Elizabeth George--Thank you so much, Alexis! That sock yarn is destined for one of the Interweave Knit patterns in this issue!

April Showers

When I am overwhelmed, excited, nervous, happy and/or sad I make a list. Generally speaking, I am a list-maker. But I don't usually write it in number order; instead it looks something like this:

This, my friends, is how my brain works.

I have determined the knitting projects for our vacation--I am going to do socks--yoga socks and as many skull not-socks as I can crank out with the given amount of skeins I bring. Speaking of socks,mosey on over to Brooklyn Handspun Yarns, and see the beautiful colors that Marie has posted. I have put an order in for a skein of Garden Party!

Motivated by the upcoming photos I will be taking for Saturday's Flash Your Stash, I decided to frog some of the "projects which were started, but, alas, were never meant to be." So far that has included: a 1/4 started French Market Bag (I already knitted 2) in Brown Sheep; a finished, but never seamed because I messed up the neck and knitted a hat and mitten set instead baby sweater in Mission Falls Cotton; Interweave Knit's Flower Pillow in Brown Sheep (I hated the yarn for this project) and then the same pillow front knitted in yarn which I bought at the crazy yarn shop (I love this yarn, but I think I needed to use a smaller needle size!). Frogging allows me to put to rest theses projects which were terminal, and also recycle the yarn back to my stash for other projects.

Flash Your Stash

I succumbed to the April 1st Flash Your Stash celebration. Trouble is, in doing so, I feel like I need to organize my stash so I can photograph it! My laundry room is upstairs outside of my kids bedrooms (it is soooooooo wonderful!) and about 6 months ago I converted this tiny “hole” into my “knitting room”--where I store stash, and needles and patterns. So there are baskets and drawers and shelves full of yarn . . . and then there is the yarn in my closet, my son’s closet, my bedroom and the family room.

And sometimes there is stash in the car which is there until I can figure out where to stash it in the house!!!!

The Sun Rises

Why is it that simple sleeve, or back increases get me frogging, but the increases on the front of this jacket zip right along?
B-E-A-U-tiful! xoxoxo

I knitted the seam as I cast off, by running a “life-line” through stitches way back on row 84. This seemed to have worked wonderfully, however I worry that the bind off appears a little too tight, On to second sleeve; and I still have to fix the neck on the back.

Sshhhhhhhhh . . . More yarn . . .

Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in pink-a-boo for Knitty’s Sitcom Chic. Baby Ull in blue/grey, brown, black and pink for a couple pairs of “not socks with skulls” (using the anklet sock pattern, and putting the skull on the instep!). Speaking of my secret obsession with skulls, maybe I was a pirate in another life!

My pirate name is:

Captain Bess Roberts

Even though there's no legal rank on a pirate ship, everyone recognizes you're the one in charge. Two things complete your pirate persona: style and swagger. Maybe a little too much swagger sometimes -- but who really cares? Arr!

Get your own pirate name from fidius.org.

More To Do's

As if there is not enough to do on the knitting front, I found myself perusing the Knitty Archives, and listing projects to do--a mere 19 made the list. Add this to the 12 projects on my current "things I want to do" list. . . I won't have to worry about what TO DO: I just need to worry about what else I will fancy to put on the list!
I joined the Interweave Knits' One Skein Swap which will begin in June. Matched with a pal, you send 1 skein in June, another in July, and for August you knit something for your pal using just one skein. This sounds like fun, and I also like these kind of swaps, especially as I think towards summer!

Speaking of swaps, I am gathering my goodies for the Knit the Classics Mystery Swap. I am sending a contemporary mystery by Alexander McCall Smith, In the Company of Cheerful Ladies--just released--it is a lovely, gentle mystery; and I love the title! Also in the box is Lorna's Laces Sock Yarn in Black Opal, a sock pattern, and some trinkets--maybe some needles for socking-it, too!

May I lodge a complaint . . .

About MYSELF????
Let's talk about the Sunrise Circle Jacket . . . After frogging the back several times, I finally finished the collar, and attempted to bind off in a 3 needle technique to avoid the seaming, as I did ever so successfully at the bottom of the back. I kept checking my progress on the right side, and was quite pleased with myself (always a sign of ill things to come!) . . . When I finished, to my horror the seam wasn't straight. Hmmmmmmm: rip it out, and attempt it more carefully--well, let's just say that removing the bind-off isn't quite as easy as you may imagine: yarn frays and breaks, yarn knots up, yarn doesn't let the stitches give away . . . you get the picutre.. I was so frustrated, I decided to put it down, and attempt it over the weekend, when I would (hopefully) have more patience.
I decided to cast-on for the sleeve--46 stitches as per the pattern. As I knitted, I thought about how wide it looked. Despite my rather endowed chest (the reason for making the size 41, along of course with my "curvey" hips--ugh), I am sort of small bones. The cuff at 48 seemed too big. Riiiiiiiiiiiiippppp: let's try 44 stitches. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiip: 42 stitches, and re-write the increases on the pattern so that I end up with the right number of stitches for the circle part of the jacket. In between, haricuts for the kids, ballet and jazz class, roller hockey and entertaining our dear friends for the evening, I knitted, ripped and knitted this sleeve.

Can you believe I had thought I would be wearing this to a dinner party this week? Good Grief.

Kpixie Acquisitions

Last week, in another fit of spending (!) I ordered this:

How lovely it all is: Shepherd Sock Yarn in Black Opal and Safari, Worsted in Old Rose, and the Yoga Sock Pattern which I have wanted to knit for a million years. One of the skeins is for my Mystery Book Swap Partner (I originally thought safari, as it goes with the theme of the book I am sending her, but I think she may prefer the black opal).

Cherries . . . With Chocolate anyone?

In my aspiration to become a sock knitter, I thought that ordering some beautiful sock yarn would help! Enter Brooklyn Handspun Yarn's skein of Chocolate Covered Cherries--I love the name, and I love the colourway!

After a few starts and re-starts (this seems to always be the case when I begin a new project!), I settled on Jaywalkers, with a size 1 circular. Even though I missed my February deadline for the sock of the month kal, it has set me in a good position: the not socks count for March, and I will try to finish the Jaywalkers by the first week for April--it is sort of like working 1 month ahead!

Not Socks

My kids love socks that don'’t stick out above their sneakers at all--they call them "not socks!" So here is a pair of them, knit in the Trekking xxl on a size 2 circular. Despite my very deliberated attempts (thank you, sockbug), I could not get these to be identical--notice how the tops are the same, and then it is somewhat downhill from there!). The pattern is Alison's anklet, a free pattern available on her blog, http://alison.knitsmiths.us/.

Since I missed the February sock-of-the-month deadline, this pair count as my March socks. I found a skull pattern at Mag
Knits, and I am thinking of putting the skull on the instep of the anklet for my son. I am not sure if that is next up in the sock department, or Jaywalkers Or Yoga Socks: I can't quite decide!

Bunny A-long

In the spirit of the season, I ordered Kate Gilbert’s bunny pattern (I sort of feel like it is Kate Gilbert month, since I am also working on the Sunrise Circle Jacket!) and joined the bunny along. Even though my kids are passed the Easter Bunny stage, I still do Easter Baskets, and I think they will each be finding one of these cuties tucked inside!

Finally some Photos!

Lady Eleanor--knitted, blocked and even worn once. Ta da . . .



I fringed it with 8 stitch triangles and thick tassels--and I am so happy I did. Incidentally, I did get to wear it the airport yesterday as I planned!


Here is my first sock for the sock a month kal, which by the way didn’t get finished for February--oh well, there is always March. This pattern is from Alison, the anklet sock; I am using multi-colored Trekking (charcoal, green, white pink) Cute, huh? I am already wondering how to manage an identical match.


And here is the very beginning of The Sunrise Circle Jacket in purple heather. I am so happy I chose to knit this in the yarn called for in the pattern, as it knits beautifully and has a dense, felted feel to it. I am hoping the finished product will look good on me!