FO Gale Stole

I finished Gale Stole.
Pattern by knitspot
Yarn by Briar Rose Fibers, Grandma's Blessing. This yarn appears to be discontinued. Go look at the other yarn options.
used size 10 nylon circular needle
Cast-on 3 years ago.
for knitSB

I'll post a picture of the finished stole after I block it.
This was an enjoyable knit. A well-written pattern and a nice yarn. I do hope I'll have enough yarn to knit myself a pair of socks with the remaining yarn.

Stupid Questions knittingbrow asks

"Do You Knit Lace?"

The LYS that I (used to) work at (and mostly just teach a few classes) sponsors Knitters Connection. I really had fun at the event. Not only did I get to see and feel amazing amounts of yarn, I also met some great people. One of my passions in life is to help people find their "bliss" and it usually takes the form of getting the perfect yarn for their projects. Some of you have seen me help knitters find their yarn. It's fun!

I mentioned "Wooster" in previous blog and videoblog posts and how I met Chris from Briar Rose Fibers. They were at Knitters Connection! I'm an equal opportunity yarn person. I want to help you find the perfect yarn, regardless of who is selling it. (Shhh, don't tell my boss.) Briar Rose's booth was right across from our booth and I wanted people to see the colors in person (and touch the yarn). I'm that way. The video tells a story of the stupid question that I asked. Watch and then continue reading.



Yep, there it was. A reasonable question given to an interested knitter. I didn't find out who she was until about an hour later (I think). *face palm* Marilyn van Keppel translated the lace patterns for Bundanaurriklaedid available from Schoolhouse press. I own this book! She translated other LACE knitting books too!
knitspot and the Gale pattern! Quick, go buy some lace yarn from Briar Rose. Schoolhouse Press and knitspot have got lots of pattern options!

umm, UFOs

Hey, this turned out to be straight-forward on my MacBook Pro. I like to talk so I thought I would use a video to start blogging again.

UFOs are "unfinished objects" when related to knitting. I discovered this as my stash was being moved around as we were clearing up areas of the house. I got distracted and started to "shop from stash" and discovered some amazingly wonderful yarns. Before I cast-on another project, I want to complete some projects. The UFOs.

1. d'zined yarn. This sock was cast-on during the fun of the Magician's Nephew that took place in March/April. I just cast-on and started knitting. The feel of the sock is comfortable so it has merit to be finished. I think it's more of a fall and winter sock because of the tight gauge.
2. the "Lopi Sock." I learned to knit socks using this pattern and Lamb's Pride Bulky. These knit up fast on size 10 or 10.5 needles. I've knit 9 pairs of these socks. They are wonderful to wear around cold houses to keep your feet warm. A fast knit and short so they don't go up far on the leg, so it's a slipper sock. This one has a twisted cable pattern. I'm using ends of the Lamb's Pride Bulky so the colors are mis-matched, bright and cheery! I will finish this. Now, who should get this pair?
3. Elbac Scarf. This pattern from knitty. I'm using Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Worsted yarn in a blue color. I'm halfway through the scarf, almost. I found the knitting a bit too detailed to be "mindless" and I've had to keep track of rows and st repeats and such. bleech. Nice sound effect, eh? Who will get this scarf? The ribbing scarf does have some stretch to it so it will get a bit wider. This one might be in the "finish" pile.
   
4. The Placerville vest. It's LOFTY LOU'S YARN SHOP in Placerville, CA. Lou spun the yarn herself and I like that I purchased a handspun yarn that no one else would ever have. I got creative by introducing a purple yarn to make the vest. I'm using the EPS system to create this vest to fit me. I will finish this. What I need to do is determine how I'm going to decrease the v-neck of the vest. I've got three steeks going (two for sleeves, one for neck). The lighting doesn't show the colors well at all. (n2s: better lighting)
   
5. the Prayer Shawl. the M's gave me lots of acryllic yarn which is good for a prayer shawl because it's washable. The colors remind me of peonies that my grandmother gave to my Mom. Those huge pink blooms with a dark green framing and slight bits of dark pink. Wonderful memory for me. This one is knit length-wise with fringe, not tassels. It's knitting up fast and I'm only knitting on it around friends and people who love me. Nothing better to go into a Prayer Shawl than love and support. I'm giving this to my mother who will donate it to her church.
6. Maryland Sheep and Wool Sock out of the claudia (I think). One sock is finished. I got lost in the middle of the second heel using Don's toe-up sock pattern from two years ago. If I ask, I wonder if Don could actually tell me where I am in the pattern. I'd like to finish this second sock. I mean, I'm so close and the sock has great memories of my first trip to MS&W.
7. Scallop Scarf my own variation out of Jitterbug. I like my pattern a bit better because the color shows up a bit better. I've got about 1/2 of this scarf done. The thing that is tough is that I knit three other complete scarves for a class that I taught. That explains the "time-out" for the scarf. It wouldn't take much to finish the scarf and it's reversible and won't curl. Thoughts on this? I mean, the yarn could turn into socks, right?
   
8. Baby Surprise Jacket out of Cascade 220. I used this as a class sample for the BSJ class I tought. I need to seem this BSJ with some interesting i-cord trim. I'm hesitating a bit because I've not done this technique before. Finishing this will be time consuming and buttons. This one is in the finish pile.
   
9. Gale Shawl out of Grandma's Blessing from Briar Rose Fibers. Love the pattern. Love the Yarn. Love the recipient. Absolutely to be finished. Will I take it on the "fishing trip?" I've not decided. "wooster" Guess who walked in on the recording of this? See him in the back? He's like...what are you doing?
   
10. Yoke Sweater using Lopi Yarns. The blog history of this error can be found in the archives by clicking here. The colors are my own combination. I've got to tick back to correct the error. Really, all that is left is the fair isle knitting on the yoke. I'm more than half way done. I wish I had pulled out the error before I put the sweater in hibernation. If I take this on the fishing trip, I need to be ready to knit on it. It's not car knitting for me.
    

What you didn't see are the 6 other projects sitting on the side table. Now, these are UFOs and not the "promised projects." That's a completely different post.

Thanks for watching and reading. Please leave a comment to let me know if you enjoy the new format and why. BTW: I went with youtube because I couldn't stop talking after 90 seconds. Flickr limits to 90 seconds.

All the Yarn

Songferret, knitSB and I attended the Great Lakes Fiber Show last weekend. We had a great time, overall. Got to see some people that I meet during 2007's Knitter's Connection. I purchased a great deal of yarn and enjoyed every last skein of it! I'll be sharing some details and pictures over the next couple of days.

I was very thrilled to see Briar Rose Fibers there! I noticed the name because of they are a sponsor of Cast-on podcast. I made sure that I told her I noticed the name because the sponsorship. Cool to meet someone that helps to bring a good thing into existence. I got some lace-weight yarn and two skeins of a sport weight yarn. One skein of Grandma's Blessing in a dark colorway that has deep blues with browns and reds. It will turn into something wonderful designed by Knitspot. There is massive yardage in this skein! 1200 yards! I'll be able knit quite a bit with this yarn.

BTW: I had a rock star moment with knitspot. I was searching for her patterns because I saw that Francis had one I didn't see. So I was searching in a book, bought 3 patterns and was walking to a different shop when....there she was Anne...aka knitspot! I squeed and pointed at her and said as I pointed "you're knitspot!" Sure enough. And she's nice. I only regret that I didn't snap a picture.

Back to the yarn. I also bought a skein of Legend that is 1500 yarns of deep rich browns and khaki to deep olive green. Nice, huh? It will be made into a Twinings Stole by knitspot.

The lace weight is Angel Face in 100% alpaca! An amazing 2500 yards of handpainted yarn. This stuff is great and very affordable. Briar Rose provides a rather nice yarn, handpainted with a brown undertone. I've been looking for some yarn that could turn into a "manly" type of lace or shawl. I think I found my source for the yarn. Briar Rose will be at KC in a couple of weeks. I plan to say "hi" while I consider some additional yarns. Stop by and see these great yarns.