Encore

Do you find there are some patterns you've worked with that just require an encore performance? Perhaps it is akin the "potato chip knitting" where you cannot make just one. It is a rare thing for me to want to make something more than once, but there it is. Three shawl patterns that just would not let go! Of course the first is the Mock Faroese by Lily Chin. The evidence:

Then there is My Blue Jean's Shawl using Elisa's variation which not only caught my fancy, but also that of my friends and family. Of course, I loved the pattern so much that I was happy to make some for them:

#1 I thought was for me, but turned out to be for Gina

#2 This was meant for me, and I actually got to keep it!

#3 Went to my friend Gail

#4 Was a surprise for my Mom after she hinted rather heavily...

#5 A lighter blue for the spring and summer...for me

#6 Is a repeat of #2 for a swap partner. It went off to the midwest.

#7 Went to my sister after she wondered aloud when she would get one of these shawls. I later learned she had been hinting at the same time our Mom was, but I had missed it! LOL

The last one was the result of a search for a summer shawl for my mother (first picutre). It is the Crocheted Cobweb Capelets and Shawls (AC-31) by Evelyn A. Clark which comes in four shapes. All of these were made with fingering weight Frog Tree Alpaca. It is a simple pattern which turns out airy, drapey, and warm. When a friend asked for shawls fitting this description for some relatives, how could I say no?

The red triangular one has inspired me to make one of these for myself some day. I love rounded ones, but they just don't look well on me. If figure I deserve one...

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So, what patterns have you stitched that deserved an encore?

Hello Again

I am more than a little shocked to discover so much time has gone by since I last posted! January? Really? Ah, well at least there's always the opportunity to start again.

When last we spoke I was a renter. Now, I am a home owner! Thanks to the real estate market and the first time home buyer funds from the government I now own a lovely little condo. WOOT!

So, let's see, crochet... what do I have to report... Um, how about this?

It was started way back in November around Thanksgiving and just recently finished. Why? My sister took off for the winter and was not around to decide on the size or border. I still love this Mock Faroese pattern by Lily Chin. It is simply perfect for those yarns with long color repeats. I'm pleased to say she loves it and so does her husband. High praise indeed!

This make the third time I've crocheted this pattern and I am certain it will not be the last. Speaking of patterns stitched more than once, I'll have another to share next time.

Here's hoping everyone has been enjoying their stitching while I've been absent. I look forward to catching up with all of you! TTFN - Gigi

An Auspicious Beginning

My first shawl for the 10 Shawls in 2010 is done! When I saw how quickly it was working up, I found it hard to put down. Then it occurred to me...wouldn't it be cool to be the first person to finish a shawl and do it on the first day of the new year? Mission Accomplished!

Happy New Year!

Anyone who knows me or has been reading for a while knows I am addicted to shawls. So, when a little birdy whispered in my ear that there was a group starting on Ravelry called 10 Shawls in 2010, what was I to do? Join and start planning of course!

Well, it is almost midnight in Olso, Norway. When it is 1 second past, we can begin. I feel lucky that I'm six hours behind. I get to start stitching at 6pm! What will the first shawl be? Well, since I am working on a large one for a friend, I picked a smaller one: All Shawl by Doris Chan. I have a skein of Sapphire Cherry Tree Hill sock yarn that has needed a project for a while. Soon it will be a shawlette!

Happy New Year to all (whatever time it begins where you are)!!!!!

Refreshed

I've been making so many large projects, that I forgot the joy of quick little ones. Thanks to the dishcloth swap, I've been refreshed. Perhaps I should intersperse some hats in with the larger projects for that little rush of success. After all, one can only use just so many dishcloths! ;-)


Create Your Own

Patterns: Fish Washcloth/Dishcloth, Super Simple Tawashi Flower, Amikomo 3-28, N-592 Ohina Tawashi, Fire Blossom Dishcloth, and Simple Scrubby

Homeward Bound

In less than a week, I will be a homeowner for the first time. I wanted a house, but could afford a condo. So, I searched until I found the comforts I wanted. Now I'm looking forward to (in no particular order):

1) Having a dish washer again. It's been about 20 years.
2) Having a garage! I am so tired of scraping icy windows and shoving snow off my car.
3) A washer and drier in my home. No more common laundry. No running up and down the stairs. No more waiting for a machine or for people to move their clothes.
4) If it's broken or doing something strange, I can just take care of it rather than waiting and waiting for maintenance.
5) An extra bedroom for guests. =-)
6) Using something bigger than a tack nail to hang things on the wall.
7) NO MORE BUILDER BEIGE rugs!!!
8) Walls that are colored instead of white, white, white everywhere I look.
9) Furniture purchased to suit the space.

Oh, I could go on and on. I'm so excited and grateful that the current market conditions have helped bring this about, at last!

The circular lace afghan was meant for the guest bedroom whenever I found a place. Perhaps, that is why I have not frogged or swatched the new version. Perhaps, I'm waiting to be home.

Flashy Fiber

The other day I was in the LYS looking for a semisolid fingering weight yarn to make a lace scarf. Um, this one. Anyway, I walked by a display with a big fluorescent sign stating, "Do not work with this yarn pulling from the center. It will tangle. It is designed to be worked from the outside." I looked, at the yarn in the baskets, but didn't see anything unusual. Just the typical skeins. I wondered, but moved on.

I kept shopping and walking by that sign. I could not stand it any longer and decided to dig through the baskets. That's when I discovered this: The sign was referring to these Zauberballs. It didn't take long for one to jump up and demand to be taken home. (I'm a sucker for purples). No pics yet, but it is transforming into the aforementioned lace scarf, beautifully.

Oh, and speaking of lace, yes, Halia is no more. I have not, however, gotten around to the circular afghan. I guess it needs some more time in time out.

Then there is the scarf I made from Wisdom Poems using half double crochet. The colors were so beautiful I realized a simple textured stitch was the way to go.

I'm really happy with the result. It is headed for the local women's shelter as requested by the author of the Halia pattern. I hope it keeps someone nice and warm this winter.