Well, here I am after a hard morning of buying yarn! This morning I ordered from Classic Elite – nothing new, just more of the yarns we love already: Alpaca Sox, Silky Alpaca Lace, Toboggan, Fresco, Kumara, and Liberty Wool – all in new colors. Lovely! Then new colors from Fibre Company in Road to China Light, Canopy Fingering, and Acadia. A few precious skeins from Jade Sapphire in their Cashmere/Silk Blend. A new yarn (for me) called Maxima from Manos, and not too much else that’s new – their new colors are all neon! What were they thinking???? And a load of MadelineTosh Merino Light. The hard part after ordering is realizing you won’t see these beauties for several months. But that means there’s always something to look forward to.
We got some new sock yarn in this week, which is always fun:
Here are a few new colors of Opal, some in their Fairies & Elves series and a couple from Vincent Van Gogh. I always look forward to seeing what comes next with these folks, they’re very creative.
and these pretty colors in Fortissima’s wool/bamboo blend. You’ll love the way this feels in your hands and on your feet!
I finished this little Westlake shawl/scarf last week and it looked like a poor little curly leaf when I finished:
Then I blocked it and it looks like this (only better when it’s off the floor and onto a person):
Blocking makes such a miraculous change in the character of your knitting. Of course, there are some things it can’t change. Najma Iqbal was happily sewing sleeves into an armhole and it was going so well, she kept going and sewed the side of the sleeve onto the side of the body. When she discovered it, she didn’t have a fit. No, she held it up and said, “Trish, is this one of the things that you always say will be okay once it’s blocked?’ Najma’s funny and a good attitude is half the battle, right?
Here’s another Stephen West design that Sheila Yarus knit into an adorable baby blanket, made from Ranco and Taiyo Sock. I love the two yarns together and the way the stitch patterns change as you move out the circle. It’s bright! it’s fun! It was knit on size 3 needles from the center out! Kudos, Sheila!
Marcia Martin is recovering from foot surgery, so she had some serious knitting time and made this wonderful entrelac sweater. She said it wasn’t blocked yet, but I couldn’t resist taking a picture. You should feel this sweater in Pacolana – lofty, soft, and really luscious. She did her own thing on the sleeves, incorporating the contrast color with a small stripe.
Minna Bromberg wore her wedding cap in – I don’t think you can see how pretty it is, with just a little silvery sparkle knit in, and a delicate lace pattern. She’s making CD cozies for a concert she’s doing at the Miller Center Wednesday night and selling CD’s to benefit Berks Women in Crisis. I hope some of you get a chance to go!
And here’s the (southern) belle of the blog this week. Jettie Hunt brought in her beautifully blocked Celes Shawl, from a class that finished up just a few weeks ago. Done in a truly beautiful midnight blue shade of MadTosh Merino Light, it’s just stunningly lovely:
Thanks, everyone, for bringing in your projects. We love seeing them and it makes for such an interesting blog, yes? Now, I’m going to finish the pattern for a store-bought sweater that Virginia Griffith wore in one day. And then I’m going to see if I can talk Virginia into test-knitting it for me!
See you soon…
Trish
