Mothlady

Not a portable knitting project

There are several reasons why Aranmor is not a portable project.

1. Yarn

1.2 kilos of pure Shetland wool. A very nice yarn to knit, apart from the fact that like almost every dark-coloured yarn I've knit with it leaves stains on my fingers.

2. Needles

 

4.5 mm straight needles which will poke other passengers if I try to knit on the train. And a cable needle which I will promptly lose if I try to knit somewhere else besides on the sofa. (I lose the cable needle there too, but at least it's easy not very hard to find.

3. Charts

I'm using six charts at the moment (I covered them to avoid any copyright issues). Notice the state-of-the-art system of yellow sticky-notes.

I can't remember the last time I've been this keen on knitting something. At the same time I'm holding myself back, I don't want to finish it too quickly because... Well, you all will think I'm insane but the truth is that right after the ribbing I felt sad because I knew this project would come to an end some day. Have you ever had that feeling? That a knitting project is so wonderful that you wouldn't like to let go of it, ever. I guess this question applies only to process knitters :) And I think my opinion will probably change somewhat once I find myself on sleeve island.

But I am enjoying every moment now and although it seems I've only knit a couple of rows each day, I'm already more than half-way through the front before neck shaping begins. It's all bunched up when it's on one needle, but my calculations turned out to be exactly right (all those additional courses in high school math paid off after all) and the size is perfect.

Now, if only I could be absolutely sure I've got enough yarn...

Miscellaneous links

I finished Here and There Cables scarf from Scarf Style in time for mom's birthday and she seemed genuinely pleased. After that we ohhed and ahhed over my Aranmor (she said it might be the best thing I've knit so far - ooh!) and then we went through her stash (which fits in one very large basket - she's so restrained when compared to me). It's nice to have a mother who understands these things :)

I did have my camera with me to take pictures of the finished scarf, but the battery was dead. Duh. Oh well, I'll take pictures next time.

Although I've been unusually tired and very busy with work (hence no blogging) I've still been able to knit quite a bit. But it's slow going with Aranmor. The purl side rows are fairly easy because you don't need the cable needle, but the knit rows... I never knew I could be so happy about purl rows.

So, no pictures this time but here are a couple of interesting links I've come across lately.

It seems we're not the only ones with a moth problem. Even the royalty have difficulty in getting rid of them. (In fact, our moth problem hasn't been so bad lately. Could it have something to do with the fact that the hall where there's usually been moths (because of the woolly mittens, hats and scarves we keep there) was painted in May? I don't know, I'm just glad that there are less of those greedy little wool-eating buggers. And in case anyone's wondering, we've done everything: washing, freezing, airing, cedarwood, moth repellants etc. And I keep all my yarn in airtight containers.

Remember that beautiful shawl Icarus from last summer? (Yarn Harlot's version was very pretty.) I for one didn't manage to get that issue of Interweave Knit Magazine, but you can buy the pattern now.

And if you're looking for free patterns, how about that cute ballband dishcloth in Mason-Dixon Knitting? The pattern can be found here.

I think most of you might have already read it, but here's a hilarious story about a new bra by Yarn-a-Go-Go. Snort. That was funny.

P.S. Pssst, want some pure, uncut muskox wool? Canadians and Americans have their own qiviut pushers, but here's a European connection. Now go get your fix, the secret password is "Do you take Visa".

Old and new projects

Beginning of January (Okay, it's already mid-January, but let's not dwell on that. I've had a lot of work stacking up.) feels like a good time for an overview, so here are some old projects that I finished late last year (but never had the time to blog about) and some new ones that I'm working on now.

This small crocheted basket didn't turn out the way I thought it would be. Here it is before and after felting.

I used one skein of Zitron Turmalin and, as you can see, it looked better before because it felted unevenly. I was going to use it to hold all the knick-knacks on my work desk, but now it's in my highly organized knitting needle box (ahem) and I keep my darning needles, needle gauges etc. in it.

This is something I really needed.

I took some old yarn from stash (this is actually the same colour I used a tiny amount for the kitty bed) and crocheted until it was large enough to hold a knitting project.

Or, if the sides are up, I can fill it with yarn.

This scarf will bring colour to bleak winter days.

It's a simple rib scarf knitted with one skein of Harmony (55% kid mohair, 22.5% wool, 22.5% silk). It's luxuriously soft, but it sheds all over the place (like all mohair). Brooks Farm is once again selling some "widows and orphans" at a discounted price, so take a look there if you're interested. I still have about a sweater's worth of this yarn.

This was my last FO of 2006, Besotted Scarf. I used every inch of Lamb's Pride worsted (the colour is Prairie Fire) I had left from Banff. (See? Stash yarn again! I'm not so hopeless as you all think.)

It was a nice simple project and, just like Alyssa said, a great way to practice cabling without a cable needle :)

BTW, I always find it very difficult to take pictures of scarves. How are you supposed to do it without ending up with photos that look... well, silly. Here are some examples. (Once again, click on the pictures if you want to see them bigger.) The one above is The Log.

The Letter A.

The Diaper.

The Toilet Paper.

But I digress, let's move on to some of my current projects. (I should really count all my WIPs and UFOs. I wonder if the number has gone up to two digits?) Here's the bleu-blanc-rouge trio, and I'm very excited about each one of them.

Bleu - Aranmor sweater.

Blanc - Here and There Cables Scarf, a birthday present for mom.

Rouge - Pomatomus socks.