Littler = cuter

Isn't it a little unfair how true it is that the smaller a thing is, the cuter? Pygmy animals, cars, mini pastries.... And of course, baby clothes.

I wish everyone I knew had babies on a regular basis! The projects are quick, the results are (to borrow the title of my nephews' favorite show) too cute, and babies are amazing models. Plus, there's wiggle room when it comes to size. A baby won't be offended if you hand-craft a sweater that's a bit too big. In fact, their parents will probably welcome it!
I'm probably just a few days away from finishing this little charmer, even though the baby isn't coming until June. This, my friends, may be a first. Of course, the sweater's not done yet and my typical m.o. is to get a great head start and then fall into complacency until the last minute. (Let's not talk of my thesis right now, okay?)
I've been enjoying a bit more free time as of late. I should be reading. My current book, The End of Men is overdue from the library and I'm doing my first book club in a couple weeks! We're reading The Alchemist, which has been on my list for a long time. Speaking of books! Have you pre-ordered your copy of Fit to Flatter yet? I've had a couple of quick peeks while the book was in progress and let me tell you, you want it! Great patterns, great instruction... it's no wonder Amy's classes have been so popular; she's a great teacher.
Here's hoping I at least have the body done of this little beauty this weekend. And then to make the hard choice: which booties? I usually go with Saartje's Bootees, which are fun to make and always very well received. But I've already made them a few times, and I'd sorta like to try something new. Maybe these with the sweet lace detail to echo the sweater? Or what about these? I need to stop trawling my Rav queue for booties. I WANT TO KNIT EVERYTHING!

Here comes the sun....

We had a brief moment of sunshine this evening, and I took advantage to show off my scarf!

For those who missed the earlier entries, this is my first actual, factual lace project. This assessment is based on my own set of qualifiers, and includes fancy borders, clever construction, and fine weight yarn. Now that I've had a taste, there's no going back! I've been using all of my willpower to resist stashing more lace weight yarn (I'm trying to abstain until Rhinebeck), and it's been so hard. I feel like that kid who dips their toe into the water, but once they're all wet, you can't get them out.



This isn't the most flattering picture of myself, but I wanted to show the scarf in actual use. To recap:
pattern: Scarf with the Striped Border from Weldon's, Volume 5, 1890, from Victorian Lace Today by Jane Sowerby (pssst... the link leads to KnitPicks, where the book is 40% off!)
yarn: Handmaiden Seasilk
needles: US7 Addis (not the lace ones, though now I see the allure)

I love Victorian Lace Today! The book is beautiful, and the patterns are just incredible. I want to make almost everything in there. The best part about this book is that I feel, even as a novice, that I can make any pattern in there. There are instructions in the back for some lace techniques, and the instructions are so clear, I didn't even need to check another source for a clearer picture. For instance, I had to do a crochet cast on for this project, which I've never done before, and the succinct diagram and instructions had me casting on after my first glance. I definitely plan to make a shawl soon. And I've gone on about the yarn already, but seriously, it's fantastic. If you ever get a chance, snap some up. One hank is more than enough for a scarf!

In less enthusiastic news, war work continues with the Socks That Rocks.
Dear Blue Moon Fiber Arts People,
Please, please, please put your superior dying prowess to use on a true solid yarn.
Best Regards,
Knitter Who Wants the Pattern to Speak the Loudest




The issue here is clearly that, despite my intense denial and wishes to the contrary, both yarns are variegated (even though the word "solid" appears in the Navy description). Since both yarns are changing colors , the effect is less fair isle, and more Jackson Pollack. To make matters worse, there's still the issue of what basically amounts to pooling (both yarns hit the same color sections at the same time).



I thought maybe I could live with it, I even did two repeats of the fair isle instead of just one to make sure it wouldn't grow on me, but I just don't like how these are coming out. So, fine. I'll make lemonade, and make a nice, jaunty scarf using both yarns. My brother says the following whenever I start to lose my cool over an inanimate object, "You gotta be smarter than the [whatever I'm mad at]." Surely I'm smarter than yarn. Right?

Done Business

So, I finished my lace scarf yesterday in the morning and immediately set it out to block. Unfortunately, none of pre-blocking photos came out very well, so all I have to show you is the scarf almost done.

At least you can see the pretty colors! The yarn did an uneven striping, which I actually like in this piece, because it reminds me of ripples in the ocean on a calm day.

Looks like we'll have some sun around here for a few days, so hopefully there'll be an FO picture soon!

In other knitting news, I swatched yesterday for Coachella. Actually, I only half swatched. I knit most of the swatch, but didn't measure. This batch of Suede feels different to me. Softer, and bulkier.

Later, Gaters!

I'm Making Lace!

There was one other thing I got for my birthday that I hadn't taken a picture of for my last post.

Amy gave me this beautiful hank of Seasilk! The instant I saw it, I knew I would want to knit it right away. Having a single hank, I was pretty sure I'd be making a scarf.

I went through Victorian Lace Today and decided to try the Scarf with the Striped Border. I've done other lace projects (Branching Out, some lacy socks), but never anything I would consider a true lace project, with fancy borders and whatnot. I wound the yarn yesterday and did my first crochet cast on. I haven't been able to stop working on it since.



Please excuse the darkness. It rained all day today, but I didn't want to wait to take a photo! I keep pausing my knitting to admire all of the sweet eyelets and pet the incredibly soft yarn. Seriously, this yarn is exquisite. I'm also amazed by how quickly this project seems to be progressing. I'm already more than 25% finished with the center panel. I can't wait to block it!

PS: I finished Rusted Root Friday night, but don't want to take FO shots until we get some sunshine around here!