Merry Christmas!

Knitting in front of the tree... Pretty much my idea of the perfect afternoon.  I hope you are enjoying yourself as well...

Dye days

Here are a few images from my recent adventures in natural dyeing.  I mordanted some of my handspun and roving in saltwater from the ocean, and then experimented with eucalyptus and oak galls on my friend's stovetop.  

Preparing fibers for dyeing with ocean water.  

Handspun drying in the breeze.

My friend's lovely gate...

Harvesting color with Hilary.  We're gathering fresh shoots of eucalyptus.

And into the dye pot....

Silk, cotton, and my wool roving in the bottom right corner...

Tomorrow it should be dry, and we'll see the results!

Swatching

Some pretty swatches hanging out to dry.  Vintage linen thread, tripled on 10.5 needles.  These are for a fun collaboration with www.fennelbridal.com. Mixing knits and fabric is going to be fun!

Valley Ford Mercantile and Wool Mill

Excited to have a woolen mill open in my neck of the woods:  the Valley Ford Mercantile and Wool Mill in Valley Ford, CA.  This is the massive felting machine, and they specialize in felted mattresses and bedding.  So neat! 

Lale shawl

This shawl was made using Malabrigo Silky Merino (51% silk, 49% merino wool), a DK weight luxury singles yarn in Cape Code Gray. The pattern is from Knitscene, the Winter 2012 issue. Though it was a fun and relatively quick project, I had to navigate through many errors in the pattern charts. And though my gauge was much smaller than the pattern called for, my shawl seems to have come out larger.

Nonetheless, I really enjoyed the process of making this, and I very much enjoy the feel of it draping over my shoulders. This one will likely be versatile through many seasons, which is a huge plus as well!

Embroidery

Not too bad for my first embroidery attempt? Trees and branches are good practice for beginners. It's alright if the lines are a bit jagged and uneven, which mine very much are!

Best worked in the morning light while sipping tea...

Spinning!

A bobbin full of bulky 2-ply wool from a fleece I got from my friends at Stillwater Cove Ranch. A few more of these to go before I can fire up the dye pots!

Flower Basket Shawl

This was a surprisingly quick knit. I used two strands of Misti Alpaca lace-weight. It's not my favorite color, but I bought this yarn for practically nothing. The yarn itself is luscious. It's a two-ply; one ply is a light blush pink, the other is a deeper mauve. This was the perfect project for it, and I really loved working with alpaca.
The pattern is the Flower Basket Shawl from Interweave Knits Fall 2004 by Evelyn A. Clark. Great pattern, I love working from charts. I will make this one again.

Another Girasole

I am in love with this shawl, made with one strand of a single ply merino yarn, Malabrigo Lace. At first I was unsure of the yarn choice. In fact, it started as a swatch, and then I couldn't stop! The result is a feather-weight, exquisite feeling shawl. I wear it both folded in half and completely open. It will look just as great with jeans and a white top as over a dress.

Also, this was my first lace project knitting continental style. I'm glad to report that it was a breeze, and probably the reason that this shawl only took three weeks to complete, start to finish! I started knitting continental style about a year ago, but had only used it to knit garter stitch and stockinette projects in the round.... until now! My lace stitches aren't perfect yet, some of the yarn overs differ in size for example. But now I have the confidence to keep practicing...practice makes perfect!

Revisiting this pattern was a lot of fun, and may have been another reason why this second one flew off the needles. Working a big lace project is like reading a long epic novel. The anticipation of what comes next keeps me going, and I can't put it down. Watching the lace evolve and take shape through my fingers is like the weaving of a story. And then the piece has its own story that stays with me long after its completed.

Thanks for reading about my journey! I love this shawl!

Springtime Lace

This was supposed to just be a "swatch" 4 days ago, a test of Malabrigo Lace, the soft merino single-ply in the pearl colorway. As you can see, I couldn't stop myself... It's going to be so lovely.

Tunic still in progress: ripped back the bottom portion twice.

Happy sweater knitting!

Did you know yesterday was a holiday? February 9 celebrates sweater knitting every year... I celebrated hard.

Here is my progress, though it is likely to increase throughout the course of this beautiful Sunday. The sun is shining, whales are breaching, husky is napping.... I'm knitting.

Happy Sunday.

Progress.

Progress is being made!  I should have this one done by the end of the week.  Working on the sleeves now, then I will decide on length. 

Oh mittens!

I'm loving these today! My take on EZ's mitered mittens with an after-thought thumb. I used Bodega Pastures, a lovely thick worsted local yarn.
Hope you are staying warm too...

First sweater of the year

I'm making this up as I go!  I got gauge, and started knitting with some beautiful grey Cascade Rustic that I found on sale.  I love this yarn because its a singles of wool blended with 25% linen.  The drape is going to be fantastic.  I hope I have enough yarn to make this a tunic.  As you can sort of see I did a provisional cast on before working up to the armholes, raglan yoke, and neck.  With that done, I can now work the body and sleeves to the length I want or until I run out of yarn...whichever comes first.
Happy New Year Everyone!