FO Friday: Purple Gusher Socks

Project: Purple Gushers

Pattern: GUSH

Designer: Yarnissima

Available: €4.00 EUR on Ravelry

Yarn: CEY Alpaca Sox in “Byzantine Purple”

This is the second of five pairs of socks that I’m making for my mom.  Alpaca Sox is fuzzy and warm, and the pattern was fun.  Every row is charted on these toe-up socks, which I loved! I had a little trouble following the transition from pattern to rib at the top of the leg, and with both socks I had to fudge it a bit.  I chalk this up to a failing in my understanding of the “sizing” directions (three sizes are shown on each chart).  Cool pattern, great yarn.  Next!

Fiber Factor: Evolution on Ravelry

We’ve been given permission to put our Challenge #1 patterns for The Fiber Factor on Ravelry! Obviously this is just a placeholder for now — the pattern isn’t available for purchase just yet.

Go check out Evolution!

Skacel has exclusive rights for a while, but when rights revert to me I will publish on Ravelry. If you’d like a PM when the pattern does become available (either through Skacel or, later, through Remily Knits), please leave a comment on the pattern page.

Thank you!

P.S. Challenge #2 details will be out an 9am Pacific time — the video will go up on the Challenge #2 page at the same time that the competitors get the information.

Fiber Factor: Challenge #1 Results

Have you watched the judging episode for The Fiber Factor?  My presentation is at about minute 14 …

Of course I’m sad that I didn’t win, but I’m looking forward to using the feedback from the judges in the next challenge.  Of all the projects, my top three were Talitha’s striped top (with rocks), Jodie’s big blue throw, and Jennette’s cabled coat. I’m glad that own of my faves won! Congrats to Tal!

Now that Challenge #1 is over, I’m allowed to share a few more photos of my project.  To see them, go to my forum on the Fiber Factor website!

 

Fiber Factor: Goodies for Challenge #2

My box for Challenge #2 of The Fiber Factor came Saturday!

We have a choice of two yarns for Challenge #2: Simplicity, and Simpliworsted. The package included full color cards and two skeins of each yarn. Thank you to Skacel for the little extras! Heartstopper end caps for the Addi Click sets — hooray! And a nice 4×4 gauge measuring device too.

I’ve already played a bit with both weights of yarn — I will likely choose the finer gauge (Simplicity), unless Challenge #2 is “king size blankets” or “yarnbomb your home.”

This is all helping me stay calm while I wait (hrrrmmmmmm waiting is hard!) for the Results Show for Challenge #1 — debuting at 4pm PDT, aka 7pm at my house. I have some knitter friends joining me in person and via the phone to help me survive the waiting!

CO Monday: Blue Yonder Lambton, Olive Medallion Socks

Having finished one pair of socks for my mom, on to the next!  This time the yarn is Claudia Hand-Painted in a lovely shade of olive.  I chose Andrea Fox’s pattern Medallion Lace Socks. I decided to do these ones two-at-a-time, and I’m already done with both cuffs. Yay!

I also dug up some old-ish sweater stash: two batches of Shadow Tonal in Blue Yonder. I bought this is two chunks … which means I have two different dye lots.  In person, they look the same, but from experience I know that sometimes even “same-looking” yarn will make an ugly line of demarcation in a finished object. I should be ok though, because I plan to knit with this yarn mostly double-stranded, so I can easily take one ball from each dye lot and thus avert any dye lot lines.

I’m making a Lambton Top (Theressa Silver) from the 2011 Jane Austen Knits. Instead of trying to find a lace-weight and DK weight in the same colorway (or using stripes like some knitters have), I am using single-stranded Shadow for the laceweight portion, and double-stranded Shadow for the DK portion.  So far, so good!  I’ve read in other people’s project notes that the neck can be too big … for now, I’m making it as-written. I used a crochet cast-on, so it will be easy to go back and add some more fabric if I don’t like the size of the neckline.

FO Friday: playing catch-up

I’m a little behind on my Finished Object posts … so I’ll post a couple projects today, all of which were completed BEFORE the first Fiber Factor Challenge.  Next week, after the results of Challenge #1 are released, I’ll be able to share that project (whee!).  In the break between challenges, I’ve finished off three personal projects — I’m writing posts NOW and scheduling them for release once a week while I’m needles-flying on Challenge #2.

Without further ado … lookit, I made stuff!

Project: Queen Susan

Pattern: Circlet

Designer: Dani Sunshine

Available: FREE! on Ravelry

Yarn: leftover Cascade 220

This is a clever little pattern — easy and quick, with deceptively simple design.  Among other things, I love how the “points” are a larger circumference than the elastic headband — which means it lies flat when on a surface, but is snug when worn.  Brilliant!  I made this for my friend’s little girl Susan, who requested the color pink .

Project: Soft Purple Kitty Capelet

Pattern: Noelle Capelet

Designer: Martin Storey

Available: in Rowan Winter Warmers

Yarn: Rowan Lima in “purple mist”

I made this as a store sample for the Hub Mills Store.  I literally BEGGED to make something out of Lima when it first arrived … and then proceeded to take a year to finish this project. Simply put, I am not good at finishing mostly-stockinette projects.  I have to say, the fit on this is a little weird … but it’s incredibly warm, soft, and cozy.  It’s better than a snuggy for knitting!  I’m counting down the six-month waiting period until I get it back from display in the shop .

Project: Apple Green Shrug

Pattern: DROPS 130-12

Designer: DROPS Design

Available: FREE! at Garnstudio.com

Yarn: Shine Worsted in “Green Apple”

I’ve had this shrug in my Ravelry queue for a loooong time.  I bought the yarn, and put it on a shelf. The longer I had it around, the less I loved it … and the pattern appealed less and less too. But the most stubborn part of me wanted to complete a DROPS pattern — notorious for the density and brevity of their instructions.  I have to say, the pattern was “complete” in the sense that all the information to make the shrug was contained in the solid little paragraph of instructions … but I had to do a lot of expansion and math to make the knitting do-able.  I think in a print-only world, this would be fine … but in the internet era, I prefer slightly more expanded directions.

The shrug is knit in two mirror-image curved pieces that form the fronts — they are joined at the back neck and the lower back in a circle.  The rectangular piece spans the circle, and sleeves finish the garment. The curved fronts are created with calculated increases/decreases and short rows, all while keeping up with patterned columns AND a lace panel. The “other side” has the infamous “reverse shaping” direction — which isn’t terrible when it’s just armhole shaping, but in this case I found it to be a bit eye-popping.  Still, I can now say I’ve completed a DROPS pattern … and I understand why only the most intrepid knitters venture there.

CO Monday: Your Way Cowl

I’m working on a new design project … something in Danu, a one-skein cowl.  Kate’s brilliant idea was to make it so the knitter could knit it flat OR in the round — hence, “Your Way Cowl.”

I’m using my skein of Squonk from the Bestiary Yarn Club.

 

I tried out a couple stitch patterns … it’s always a challenge to find something interesting that doesn’t start a pitched battle with the colorway, when using highly variegated yarns like this one.  I think I’ve found the right one … but who knows, later tonight I may rip it all out!