Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Well, would you look at that?

Unbelievable hats at sockpr0n: Hats made from batting

Monday, July 14, 2008

Dedicating my stash

These are the plans for the yarn in my stash this year.

laceweight yarn from vieuxrouet on Etsy.com:
blue/green laceweight from vieuxrouet I plan to make the Bosom Buddy shawl from Carry (web site link). Actually, make that the Short Row Shawlette, which won't take quite as long. I'm making it on really big needles, and it looks like it's going to be very pretty. It should go very well with the black clothes I'm almost always wearing.(Speaking of black clothes, I think I have been wearing black so often that when I try on light-colored clothes, they don't look like they work on me. I'm thinking it's force of habit and personal paranoia.)



laceweight from NoTwoSnowflakes (NTS) on Etsy.com:green laceweight from NoTwoSnowflakes
Okay, my pictures just don't do this yarn justice. I love it! It reminds me, first and foremost, of all the green and blue ocean pictures you see in photos. It looks like it should smell like the sea. After a week or so, I also thought of mints. I seriously expect a pretty smell whenever I take a sniff of it. I am considering making a lace tank from Interweave Knits (Summer 2004 issue, the same one that the Madli's Shawl and Juliet sweater patterns are in). Or the Radio City Music Hall Scarf NTS created to go with the laceweight.

Interweave tankI got the yarn in the first laceweight yarn club she is offering, and will receive two more shipments, I think. I was so impressed looking at the color changes in this skein. I don't know what I expected when I joined the lace club, but this exceeds my expectations in a big way. After getting such a great skein, in a huge amount of yarn (880 yards), I have absolutely no problem paying $80 for membership. I think I'm getting more than my money's worth! If you can't tell, I'm very pleased.

NTS's plan is to offer the club on a limited basis, at first. The colorways are a surprise, but you do get to choose color families along the lines of jewel, neutral, and other categories. If I can bust my stash far enough, I will join again next year.

This particular club is closed, but there are several skeins of laceweight and other multicolor yarns on NoTwoSnowflakes' Etsy site. I highly recommend you go there and snap some up before it's gone. The pictures of her current offerings are what drew me to the laceweight club in the first place. She also dyes yarn to order.

I've changed my mind several times about what to make with the green stuff since I got the order, because there are a few shawls I want to make as well. Maybe if I don't like knitting on the lace tank all that much, I'll track down the pattern for the swallowtail shawl and make it from that.

Lily Sugar n Cream dishcloth yarn:
Lily Sugar and Cream yarnsI've completed one dishcloth using my own pattern from the peach colored yarn. Actually, I keep calling it peach, but on the label it says the colorway is "daisy" something. Ask me if I care. lol

It took several frog/reknit sessions to get the dishcloth to match on each end, make the lacy holes look like holes instead of a hidden opening, and think of a suitable border. I tried it several times in the blue yarn, then when I thought I had it down, I used the yellow yarn. I still wound up frogging certain parts.

So what does this mean for the blue yarn? My made up pattern is going to be much simpler. Since I like the checkerboard design and the way the three rows of single crochet looked on the finished daisy dishcloth, I'm going to use one big four square checkerboard design edged in several rows of single crochet. The KISS method will be used to full effect.

I'm also going to use a smaller needle and make the dishcloth using fewer stitches. I had comments that the daisy dishcloth was too big, but at this point, I don't care. I am mainly trying to bust my stash and get rid of the dishcloth yarn with a usable object. Maybe this will make two small dishcloths instead of one large one. I don't really want to stretch out the process of getting rid of the Sugar and Cream this way, but I'll do what I have to.

My mom said she wants black and white dishcloths to match her kitchen. I told her that I would teach her how to crochet so she could make her own. I am not volunteering to do any more projects for people unless it's on my own initiative. I am still working on a rug project for her that I started years ago, and I never want to put myself in this position again.

blue jean laceweight yarn:
blue jean laceweight from Kindred Spirits yarnThis yarn from Kindred Spirit's Etsy shop is still waiting to be turned into something beautiful. I have gone back and forth on what I want to do with it several times, choosing a scarf, then remembering that I almost never wear scarves. Then I'll think blouse, which would probably be way too thin for my liking. That said, though, it might make great fingerless gloves as a layer of warmth for the office.

It's 880 yards, so maybe the Print of the Wave stole by Eunny Jang would be a good choice. Or perhaps, if I don't make the Radio City Music Hall Scarf in the green lace, I could make it in this one. The jury's still out on this yarn, really. I do love it, though.

It's a purse! No, it's a tank! No, wait....Cascade Arcadia in SproutCascade Arcadia in aquaI bought these two yarns to make a purse designed by Wendy Wannacot.

I love the zigzags on this purse, but my first attempt didn't go very well. I'm going to try it again, but it's going to be a while.

If the second attempt doesn't work out, I'm going to try to use the yarn for the Interweave Confectionary Tank, which uses multiple colorways and would make a great top under a jacket.

Wendy's Via Diagonale purseI'm seriously considering buying that particular issue (Summer 2008). There's about six projects in there that I would love to have, and don't mind waiting on.



















orchid Shibui Knits sock yarn:
Shibui Knits orchid colorwayWhat else, but socks? The plan is to take this yarn and mix it with the Peony colorway to make striped socks. Vertical stripes would be cool.

I love that there's shots of lime green in this yarn, and am looking forward to seeing how it works as a blend.

I love the squooshy, springy feel of this yarn. I think it would make a really nice sweater, top, gloves, etc. And almost all the colorways are a refreshing, bright color. You should see the Midnight colorway. I think I'm going to order some of that, too.

This particular post has gotten kind of long for me. I think I will just continue it in my next post.