The Long, Hard Winter

It's been such a long time since I've posted. I really got alot of knitting done this winter and was happy that I was able to make my first shawl. It's beautiful! I also made a hat for my son which is a tad big.and FINALLY made a Clapotis.

The Clapotis is supposed to be for me but little girl wants to steal it.....

It snowed and snowed and snowed here. The front of the house looked like this.

In fact, it looked like that for a very long time. The snow came and didn't melt! We have had snow on the ground ever since the first blizzard back on December 19th! After about a week of 'spring like' temperatures, it is STILL there only it looks like this.

There are still places that there are MOUNTAINS of piled up snow, such as parking lots. That will all melt this weekend because we're expecting a deluge of rain. Well, at least it won't be white.

I also spun some lovely yak that is just about ready to be plied but I'm not sure if I want a three ply or a two ply. I'm thinking about what to do with it. I need a project that is worthy of this fiber. In the meantime, I MAY knit a pair of socks. I finished Cauchy awhile ago but I wanted to take a break from socks. If I do knit a pair they will be toe up. After making the shawl, I really like that I don't have to cast on many stitches and can be up and running right away. :)

Baby girl wants a Weasley sweater and I'm thinking of starting that this weekend in the rain storm now that my taxes are done and I can clear out my office today. I am home sick with DD who is also sick so I will clean the office instead of resting up....that's the life of a mommy, right? No rest for the weary.

In the meantime, off to shop online for a cheapie pot so that I can dye yarn in it.

Super Bowl Knitting?

I handpun some of this gorgeous fiber way back when, Navajo plied it into a nice stripey yarn and knit a stocking hat for DD. She loves it so much that she even wears it around the house. This is from Moonlightbaker's Etsy shop and the colorway is "Candied Hearts". Very suitable for Valentine's Day Knitting.

After that was done, (after being prodded) I picked up the Shawl Collar Sweater, a Martin Storey pattern that has been annoying me and has been in hibernation for many moons. I was 99% done and had to frog the front because of the bad directions. The back is knit to a certain length but the front is knit to a certain number of rows. Dumb. I nailed stitch gauge but not row gauge (does anyone really check their row gauge consistently?) and...well, you know what happened. So, the sweater stayed in a bag on the floor, in the corner of a room since October 2008.

Being it's cold, DH said, "What about my nice sweater?" And so, last night, I finished the front. This morning, I knit the collar and all I need to do now is sew up the sleeves and side seams and find a button and we're ready to go. YAY! Pictures soon!

In the meantime, Elizzabetty came over last night for tea and knitting. She's working on her second Clapotis, you know the pattern that everyone in the world has knit except me. She says that I should knit it. My next project is going to be my Knitting Olympics project, the Kiri Shawl. In fact, I ordered 3 skeins of STR Lightweight in Rosebud just for the occassion, tracked it via the USPS as it crossed the country and ripped open the package on Friday night. I ten stuck my head in the plastic bag to breathe in the yarn fumes. All the while, thinking how much I love that smell, I was itching to start something new. Alas, I had to wait for the Olympics...a full week away.

So...a nice easy warm up project is in order. A pair of socks? Nah, taking a break from sock knitting. Not up to working on Heartland Lace shawl being I'm going to be doing chart knitting very soon for the Kiri shawl (which appears to be much easier). So, Elizzabetty jumped up and down, "Knit a Clapotis!!! A Clapotis!" Ok, ok...but out of what yarn? I don't have 900 yards of anything in my stash! (Amazing, but true. I really try to buy what I intend to use!) I have some beautiful Llama but only 550 or so. Hmmn...I thought about doing it on tiny needles with two skeins, alternating, of Dream in Color Smooshy. In Vino Veritas and Gothic Rose. Here they are entwined. I think that that would look REALLY SUPER COOL!

I even wound them into balls and then changed my mind. Not for long though, they could be knit together into something else. The colors are close enough to mix them up and acheive something. In fact, some of Gothic Rose appears in In Vino Veritas. They're both beautiful.

But no, fingering weight, big project, 4 days...

Off to get milk and eggs and fill the gas tank this afternoon so I stopped into one of the two LYSs that I frequent, Infinite Yarns in Farmingdale. I am so pleased (and fortunate) to have this store relatively nearby. They have been increasing the stockpile of yarns, they carry stuff that isn't readily available elsewhere and the selection keeps growning! They have tons of books, a nice knitting nook where people where gathered knitting around a table. And, on the table were some delicious chocolate chip cookies...and other delectable goodies. I must get there for knit nite sometime (Friday, 7PM!) but it's so hard when one has a family to take care of. We'll see.

So, after tossing my head and looking all over, i was thinking about how nice the Clapotis would look in Debbie Bliss Rialto. It's one of my favorite yarns and it knits up beautifully. However, I am trying to keep to my yarn diet (and fell off the wagon earlier in the week with the STR Rosebud.) So, I was a good Punkin and got 4 skeins of Cascade 220 Heather in Navy.

Ok, off to start this. Stay tuned. Snowstorm headed this way, maybe I'll be knitting more than originally planned.