VLT Sampler Shawl Progress

I felt so guilty after telling / showing mum that I had finished the Swallowtail & started my 2nd small, lacey project that it made me pick up the sampler shawl last night and I managed to work a full repeat of pattern G (14 rows). I really don't know what it is about this shawl that I can't get to grips with it. I don't dislike it but don't love it but once I start on it I enjoy knitting it... it's just getting round to picking up the needles... perhaps because there is no urgency for it....

Anyway as there are so many patterns in this shawl I've taken a progress photo and labeled the patterns so at least it will make some sense of what I'm talking about.... I hope!!!

and here are a few close ups of the patterns.....

Patterns: B, C & D (from bottom to top)

Patterns: D, E & D (from bottom to top)

Patterns: D, C, F & G (from bottom to top)

Final Swallowtail Photos...

Here are the after blocking photos and some of the lace patterns up close & personal.... I have been asked a few times if I would do another and the answer is most undoubtedly... YES!




Close-up of the "tail" with both Lily of the Border patterns

close-up of all 3 patterns

close-up of the Budding lace pattern

The close-ups show the true colour of the shawl......

Swallowtail - Lily Pond to Fruits of the Forest

Well I seem to be on a roll this bank holiday weekend...... not only did I finish the Kermit socks on Saturday I finished my Swallowtail on Sunday night.... after an hour of casting off 323 stitches.....

As you may recall I was not happy with the colour I had dyed my lace yarn, lovely colours but far too busy for a lace pattern..... so I resigned myself that once complete I would overdye it a more suitable colour......

So it went from this....

to this...


then to this...
you can instantly see the lace pattern now that myriad of colours has gone....

and finally to the blocking....


I will take some after blocking photographs later once the shawl has dried and if it's not raining drape them artistically in my mum's garden & take some close ups of the lace....

I'm really thrilled with the whole thing, especially the colour I really don't want to part with it now.... but it will be going to a very good home were I know it will be a very much appreciated birthday gift so it makes everything worth while....

Kermit Socks!!!

Am really pleased with these.... just a shame I have to give them away as I love the colours... Just really pleased have managed to turn a 'socially unacceptable' ball of Opal Yellow Prisma into a pair of socks that a lot of people are coveting.....

My friend Ani who had a ball of this incorportaed her Yellow Prisma in with plain black to tone it down as it was even too bright for her.... so I kindly offered to overdye her ball so she could knit herself a pair of socks she could wear!!!! Needless to say she jumped at the chance.....

Practise makes perfect....

Well I almost finished the 2nd Lily of the Valley border yesterday... almost.... until I started on the 9th row and found that two rows previously I had somehow got my Nupps in the wrong place... my lifeline was 8 rows back at the end of Lily border 1 so I frogged and am ready to go again....

Oh well, practise makes perfect as they say!!!

Nupps, Nupps & More Nupps...

The Swallowtail shawl is progressing nicely albeit slowly due to the increasing number of stitches, think I'm up to about 223 now and just completed two rows of Lily Border 2.... and the Nupps just keep coming..... BUT they are getting easier.....

I was routing about on the net the other evening when I came across Fleegle's Blog and there I found a tutorial on making Nupps with nice clear photo's.... I wouldn't say I'm finding them easy but they are getting easier to do..... still can't seem to stretch the yarn out enough but I am getting some nice little 'blobs' and the stitches are easier to purl..... Oh well I've still got a few more rows to practise....

Ribbit... Ribbit...

One Kermit sock is complete and have cast on for the 2nd so there is hope for BIL getting his socks for the 6th June, not that I feel he really deserves them still... All I can say is it's just as well they're too large for me or they wouldn't be going anywhere!!!

Done a little more on the Swallowtail shawl and managed a whole 20 rows on the VLT shawl yesterday. I've got a little more enthusiastic about it again, so I think I shall do some more this afternoon, well it's my day off after all!!!

Sock Progress

Well I finally finished DH's Acapulco socks.... after suddenly realising that I said I would knit a pair for his brother's birthday (6th June) so I pulled my finger out and decided I'd better finish the Acapulco pair.....

The Chocolate Swirl pair are on the home run now, just the foot of the 2nd sock to do but they are not needed until August so not as much urgency, just as well as these are my "work socks"; ie they only get knitted during work hours, SnB group that sort of thing....

Anyway back to the BIL socks!!! I was going to use Opal Rainforest Bumblee Bee, but as he was too busy to sort anything out for my birthday I didn't feel like using one of my better balls of sock yarn out of the stash; yes I know that's mean but I was feeling peevish, still am truth be known and I will at least have the satisfaction of knowing he is wearing a pair of socks that no-one else wanted the Opal Yellow Prisma!!!!!!! However I can't be that peevish (conscience will not allow and it makes me feel guilty) so I over-dyed the yarn with Lime Green Acid dye..... I have to say I really like it now, so that plan backfired on me, serves me right! So I have nick named them "Kermit" socks for very obvious reasons.....

Heartland Shawl by Evelyn A Clark

Here you go finally photos of my birthday gift I treated myself to... It's the Heartland Shawl Kit designed by Evelyn A Clark for the first Wild Fibers Magazine with which she won 1st prize. The yarn is American Buffalo 2ply yarn (100%) which I purchased from Sharon (who couldn't have been more helpful) at Loom n Essence.






I'm really looking forward to doing this shawl. I love Evelyn Clark's designs, she's one talented lady. The yarn is soooo soft and a beautiful chocolate brown colour. The pattern is called "Bison Tracks Lace" meant to symbolize the Bison tracks and the edging is called "River of Life"

My Birthday Present came!!!!

I posted a week or so ago that I had spent my birthday money from my friend and posted some little tantalizing photos of what it might be.... well it just came, it's beautiful, I will take photos later and post regardless to say it looks like a big Quality Street Toffee

Trellis Scarf

Here you are as promised photo's of the finished scarf... I would definitely do this one again it's very simple but very effective.......

Whilst blocking

Close up of pattern

My attempts at artistic photography!!!!

Draped pver the Ceanthus bush & Montana Clematis....

I have also started my Swallowtail from Fall 2006 of IK. I have dyed the yarn myself. While I like the colours I don't think it works well for lace, so when the shawl is finished I will over-dye it with pink to give different shades of pink.......

What have I bought now?

It was my birthday a few weeks ago and I was given some money by a friend. I wanted to buy something special that I could turn round and say when asked ".... bought me this for my birthday" plus I knew the money would just dwindle away in my account on the odd yarn here and there etc... and wouldn't have anything to show for the money so after days of uming and ahing I plunged yesterday.....

Here are some photos to keep you guessing what I bought......



The Trellis scarf is finished & blocked and am really pleased with but pictures tomorrow....

I also dyed the yarn for the Swallowtail and that is wound into a ball and ready to go, in fact I'm off to start that now....

Trellis Work...

Well I've not been idle over the last few days.... and I actually managed to get ahead...

I decided a few weeks back that I would knit a lace scarf for my friend Carol's birthday on the 7th May. I found the pattern and then found the yarn from my stash. I then worked out I needed to do 1 16 row repeat every day (pattern required 23 repeats + end patterns), if it was going to be finished in time for her birthday.... nothing like setting myself a target!

Some days I managed to get in front of myself by a couple of days but then didn't knit for a couple of days. Anyway I decided a concerted effort was needed and I duly finished this morning and here it is, two days ahead of schedule....

I will block it tomorrow and post the post-blocking photos on Sunday.....

It's a beautiful pattern, very simple, although two of the rows do have the sequence:

yo, K7tog, leave sts on LH needle, yo, K7tog, leave sts on LH
needle, yo, K7tog

to reduce 7 sts to 5, this did slow me down a bit at first, but after awhile they became a lot quicker to work.... and I have to say I didn't get bored with it....

Pattern: Interweave Spring 2006

Yarn: Bought from the Ukraine off Ebay (50% Wool & 50% Acrylic) - Pistachio

Next small lace project is Swallowtail from Interweave Fall 2006 for my friend Monica's birthday at the end of June.... I've dyed the yarn myself in colours I like to think of as "Lily Pond" (photos soon). The base yarn again is off ebay from Yarn Treehouse, however, I've doubled this yarn up to getthe right guage