Thursday, June 20, 2013

Shawls for SALE

With a catch in my throat, I am posting six shawls from 2012 and 2013 that are going to be available to buy at Happicats Antique Store in Williamston.

The Dorothy Shawl - 100% wool

The Crescendo Shawl - 100% wool

The Traveling Companion Shawl - 100% wool



The North Sea Shawl - 100% wool

The Taygete Shawl - 100% wool


The Esmeralda Shawl - 70% merino/20% alpaca/10% silk

Happy shopping!

Last shawls of 2012

I completed my 12 shawls in 2012 and I am now well into 12 shawls in 2013.

The final three shawls for 2012 are:

The Holden Shawlette - this is a lovely small shawl that I knitted using Malabrigo Finito yarn.  This yarn is so soft and was a wonder to knit with.  It is 100% merino.  It took just a bit of 2 skeins to complete this project.

The Song of Hiawatha - this shawl was a kit that I purchased from Blackberry Ridge.  It was fairly complicated, but it know up nicely.  It is 100% wool (unspecified), and not quite as soft a handle as I really like.  But the shawl is almost breathtaking - it would make a lovely wedding shawl.


The last shawl for 2012 was the Dorothy Shawl from KnitPicks.  It came as a kit, but I did not like the colors of the yarn, so I substituted my own color choices.  I used Claudia hand painted merino and KnitPicks Stroll Tonal which is 75% merino/25% nylon. 


It was wonderful to have a goal knitting all these lovely shawls.  Now into 2013!

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Summer 2012

How fickle I am!  I started spinning to knit a shawl for the competition and then I just didn't like the patterns that I had chosen.  So here we are, two days before the competition, and my entry is on the kitchen floor being blocked. 

I decided to enter my shawl that I started in April, 2011, and finished in January, 2012 - the Ravelry KAL Around the World in 80 Days.  It is a rather detailed shawl made with a scattering of beads, using a yarn I bought from Knit Picks.

When using handspun, I find that I am almost selective to the point of obsession.

I also am part of a group on Ravelry - to make 12 shawls in 2012.  I am in the process of casting off number 10!  Each one is different - only one makes use of some handspun yarn.  All of rest are made with a huge variety of commerical yarn, mostly 100% wool or a wool/silk blend.  I am pleased with the fact that I am ahead of the game in having 10 shawls done before September.  I have learned a few new techniques along the way, and the wealth of lovely patterns amazes me.

I have found so many patterns that I want to try!  So I think that I will continue to knit shawls even after I have finished my 12 shawls.  First and foremost is that they can be any shape or size.  I have always struggled with sweaters because they are so difficult to make to fit right.  I still don't understand how other people manage it.  I do have a sweater almost completed out of handspun yarn.  And I am still wondering just how well it will fit when I finish it.  And I just don't have the patience to take another class on knitting a sweater - I did that before, I learned a lot, but I am not happy with my finished project.  At least with a shawl, scarf, mittens or hat, the finished project always fits just fine.

Here are pictures of the first 9 of my 12 shawls!








Tuesday, April 5, 2011

The Next Shawl

I am currently spinning the yarn for my next shawl project - that is a shawl worthy of competition. I am spinning two plies of colored cormo top from Karen and one ply of a 50/50 alpaca silk blend. I am currently planning to make the Feather and Fan Shawl from A Gathering of Lace. At least that is the plan right now. In between, many projects are being worked, including the Lace KAL from Ravelry. I finished a sweater for myself, and it turned out very well. I have enough yarn spun for another sweater, but I am still thinking about that. I have a few too many projects going right now, and life keeps taking time too. We did get DSL last week and I love it! I am even getting better about putting pictures up. It is still a chore for me, but not so bad now that they load in seconds instead of lots of minutes! More to follow as my yarn progresses. I am aiming at a 2012 completion for this next shawl.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Best Of Show!

The 2010 Michigan Fiber Festival is over and I won Best of Show in the adult division for my shawl entry. I am so glad it is over and I am so glad that I won! It was a lot of work and when doing something for a competition there is an intensity that I do not have with other projects.















The prize is $50, so that makes the effort somewhat worth it. I spent too much at the festival - glad it is only once a year. Then to top it off, I am picking up a new wheel on September 6 - the Majacraft Aura. Life is good.



Wednesday, August 18, 2010

The Project Done

It is the week of the Michigan Fiber Festival and now I am starting to feel the jitters of competition. I think that is why I really don't like to compete in this kind of thing. My stomach feels upset, and then I stop and think - what does it really matter? It will be worse on Friday when I drop it off at the competition. I must put it in my head that IT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER.

It has been fun to chronicle the process of this shawl, and I did enjoy making it. There is always a real rush with the completion of any of my knitting projects. Last night I finished a beaded stocking hat, made from a gorgeous purple 100% alpaca yarn (commercial). It went well and I stayed up until almost midnight to finish it. But I got to the point where I just wanted to get it done.

This morning I pulled out a scarf that I had started a bit ago, and I knitted on that. I am awaiting the next clue in the Ravelry Lace KAL. Maggie showed me her progress and it looks so nice. She is using a lace-weight yarn on fairly large needles; I am using a fingering-weight yarn on smaller needles. Mine will be a tighter knit finished item, hers will be light and airy. It is fun to compare the different results of the same project.

I am continuing with the work on my Allegan Cardigan from Clara Parkes book. I have my fingers crossed that I have enough yarn to finish it. I have more of Kar Kar's fleece to spin, but I am worried that the yarn won't turn out exactly the same. That always worries me with hand-spun yarn.

I am also continuing to spin the multi-sheep top that Steve and I had made last year. I am really interested to see what kind of a yarn it will produce. I have several bobbins full and ready to ply; I am still trying to decide whether it will be two- or three-ply.

My next post will be after the judging of my shawl is done. Fingers and toes crossed. Oh how I hate to compete...

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Project Complete!

Again, I cannot believe the speed at which time passes. It is almost two months since my last post, and it feels like it could have been yesterday.

The shawl is done! I blocked it yesterday, and I am very pleased with how it turned out. I guess I will send in a late registration for the show next month. Now I am already contemplating my next shawl, as I continue work on my Allegan Cardigan. And I am caught up and waiting for the next clue on the Lace KAL in Ravelry.

Life continues. On Father's Day, Rick brought Taylor for his summer visit with us. We spent two weeks basically in the house because of the mosquitoes and rain. Taylor did manage to help with the chipmunk control and got 21 of the rascals. He had fun shooting them with my gun and birdshot. Then for the July 4th weekend, the rest of his family arrived. Brian also came on Sunday. We had a very pleasant weekend, and then Taylor and Alli stayed for another week. We went to see Toy Story 3, played some cards and the marble game, and just hung out. The time flew by and the house seemed terribly empty when their folks picked them up.

But after they left, I buckled down and finished the weaving in of ends on the shawl. I have been doing more spinning lately, and it seems good.

And today, Jim and I hiked our trail for the first time in a couple months. The mosquitoes were horrendous, but at least there was no standing water on the trail like last month. He then went back and mowed it, so now it will be even better.

I guess I better get back to my knitting!