I finished stitching my Cute House for February, so I'm on a hot streak! I also was enjoying stitching so much that I decided to purchase another yearly, originally time-released but I'm late to the party, pattern from the same designer. I got caught right up and got both Jaguary and Owlbruary complete.
My sock needles were empty and that just wasn't right, so obviously I cast on yet another Crazy Zauberball. I just find the marled gradients so enchanting and the finished socks bewitchingly reliable. I'm knitting these toe-up, two-at-a-time, and making use of my trusty Sock Sack by Ramona Rose.
This month was another interesting month of family emergencies and time spent out of town and in hospital. At least as a knitter, there is something to do in waiting rooms, of which I spent a lot of time.
I finished one pair of socks which were knit with a Crazy Zauberball, the purple is very comforting to me and when I looked it up, I found out that purple can represent a peace.
The So Faded by Andrea Mowry won me over, and I cast on this month and make some decent progress.
After finishing a pair of socks, I cast on another pair straightaway. The city where I was staying had the cutest little yarn shop and I popped in to grab a skein to start knitting. The skein of yarn reminded me of the fireplace at the house I was staying in. These socks ended up being gifted as a Christmas present.
All the buzz these days is the Northeasterly by Skeinanigans and since I am always on the lookout for new ways to use up sock yarn leftovers, this seems like a good bet and I set to casting this project on.
I started a new pair of socks which are being knit from a double knit sock blank, which means I can knit them two at a time. This sock blank was one of a kind for sure! I purchased it from Black Market wool and written across the blank among pinks and yellows, was written "I AM A F*****G UNICORN". The way it knit up was a total surprise and I love it.
So I really enjoyed working on my Onward by Shannon Cook and got it finished and blocked and it's done! There really isn't enough that can be said about how perfect the Quince & Co Honey colourway is. Is is truly gold.
I really spent a lot of time this month ironing fabric to prepare it for cutting, then cutting out all the sizes needed for a quilt that I actually ended up purchasing a kit for. Sometimes I find it really hard to meet people's expectations when they ask me to make something, especially something that costs so much and takes up an incredible amount of my time. So in this case, by purchasing a kit, I was able to get approval beforehand to hopefully avoid disappointment, after going through all the steps to make the quilt. This will be a queen size quilt and all the fabrics in the quilt are coordinating batiks. So now that the cutting is done, it's time for me to get sewing.
Isn't nice that I can so solidly rely on a stockinette sock with an eye of the partridge heel flap and use such delightfully variegated yarn?
This is a Lynai Yarns, I can't seem to find the correct tag for this yarn, so I think it might be a one of a kind, but if I am able to match the colourway name, I will update!
This month I completed knitting the second sock from my Christmas Confetti sock blank from Stranded Dyeworks. Which means I have a new pair of socks! I knit these socks using double pointed needles, cuff down.
As usually, I get a bit angsty when I don't have a pair of socks in the works, so I immediately rectified that by casting on a beautiful yarn hand dyed by Vanessa at Lynai Yarns and is of course, the best because ✩ glitter ✩. This yarn is literally so marvelous on it's own, I am knitting a stockinette sock so I can just admire the colours. Vanessa is a colour genius.
There just doesn't seem to be as much time these days for crafting as there used to be, or much in the budget.
This month I did cast on the second sock from my Christmas Confetti sock blank by Stranded Dyeworks. It really feels appropriate to be knitting with a almost white yarn while just outside the window is a winter wonderland.
This month I completed my Crazy Zauberball socks. I really really love knitting Crazy Zauberballs. The gradient is always so fun, the yarn is fantastic quality and I just can't help smiling. I did these ones a bit crazy and if you can tell, the gradient goes in one direction on one sock and the other direction on another. See, fun!
With no socks on my needles, I got right to work casting on a new sock. These socks will be knit one at a time from a sock blank. Seeing as Christmas is on the way, what could be better to get into the spirit than some Christmas Confetti yarn! I love the neon green and dark red, it kind of subverts classic Christmas colour expectations. This outstanding sock blank was a purchase I made from Stranded Dyeworks and came all the way across the ocean from the UK.
In an attempt to again save money and also keep knitting, I made the decision to rip another sweater I had previous knit. My personality is like that, I guess I am a process knitter, not a project knitter. So I had a small sweater's quantity of Quince & Co. chickadee in Honey. How lucky am I to get to knit with this delicious yarn twice.
The pattern I chose for round two of the Quince & Co is called Onward by Shannon Cook and part of the collaborative book, with Jane Richmond, called Journey, which I acquired a few months ago.
My Monster Socks are finished being knit and all done being blocked. There are a lot of my favourite yarns used in these socks which makes the socks carry quite a lot of nostalgia. I used a heel flap with eye of the partridge stitch because it really does fit my foot the best.
Also completed this month is my Ladies Classic Raglan Pullover by Jane Richmond and I have to say it is all that is promised to be! I'm really excited to get wearing this, but the weather has been quite warm this year, so I might have to hold off the fashion show until a bit later into this Winter season.
I finished a pair of socks this month, these are my Blueberry Waffle Socks by Sandy Turner made with Opal Best Friends 4-ply yarn in the colourway 8863.
Just for fun I cast on another another pair of Monster Socks that I am making with leftover fingering yarn.
After deciding I don't actually enjoy wearing cardigans that don't close in the front, I decided to rip back my Mama Vertebrae sweater and that gave me an entire sweater's quantity of yarn, free and clear.
After spending hours browsing, on Ravelry of course, I chose to knit a sweater that is definitely closed in the front, and that would be the Ladies Classic Raglan Pullover by Jane Richmond. I mean classic is right there in the title. Can't go wrong with this one. I'm happy to report that I made quick work if it, it being a very straightforward pattern, and I have completed the body and have finished a good portion of the sleeves. I was a little bit afraid that I would have lopsided sleeve lengths, and I knew this would definitely bother me, so I chose to knit the sleeves two-at-a-time, and this has been going excellent. The yarn of course, is the repurposed Malabrigo Rios in the colourway Indecita.
aThis May I completed a sweet pair of stockinette socks with a Fleegle Heel.
When I saw the Timber by Shannon Cook, I just had to cast on. For this cardigan, I found some Rowan Hemp Tweed on sale for a good price and the yarn store even had enough skeins in what must be my favourite colour to wear, teal, and that just sealed the deal.
I love the idea of this cardigan, but I did learn some lessons about myself. One, I find tweed itchy. Probably something I should have checked out before committing to the time and energy of knitting a cardigan, although, maybe some laundering will help soften it up. Secondly, I do not really enjoy open cardigans with no buttons. I realized this actually awhile ago, when I knit the Mama Vertebrae, but perhaps it was wishful thinking because I really love the idea of the Timber cardigan. So next time, maybe oversize and a soft, super plushy yarn!
Another slow crafting month. I'm currently back to work and it's really harshing my crafting buzz. Nevertheless, I persist. I am slow knitting. One sock at a time, this time cuff down. Drawing out each stitch. I'm using the pattern Blueberry Waffle Socks by Sandy Turner and the yarn is Opal Best Friends.
October brought with it one pair of self-stripping stockinette socks, which is a Knit Picks yarn. I knit these toes up, two at a time, and did an after-thought heel to preserve the striping. I will need to try a different afterthought heel next time, as this one is a tad snug on my apparently ginormous baseball of a heel. Chalk it up to a lessons learned. They are definitely still wearable and might even have some give after some wear, plus they are undeniably cute.
This month also brought with it a very well fought game of yarn chicken, that I ultimately lost :-( I had to put in a special order from Quince & Co to finshed maybe 1/2 inch of ribbing around the collar. Sigh.. that's ok, that's the way it goes sometimes.
In other news the sweater is almost completed and is seriously amazing. Just my style and fits perfectly. The sweater is Birkin by Amy Miller and I just know I will get a on of wear from it.
This month was a slow crafting month, but I did manage to whip up some Monster Socks using fingering leftover from skeins used to make other socks. Just a simple stockinette sock and a heel flap with eye of the partridge. I love a scrappy sock and I am happy with how they turned out.
July has always been a hard month for me, for reasons I can't discern and don't really have an interest in dissecting at this time. But despite that, I was able to finish up a few projects.
Completed this month are both my stockinette pairs of socks with an eye of the partridge heel flap, this is my go to when I really am attached to the yarn colourway and don't want the pattern to detract or muddle the dyers intent. The bonus is that for the most part, I can watch TV or read and the socks just hum along.
The first yarn was Regia, a line by Arne & Carlos in a colourway called Tokke. In the spirit of knitting with Arne & Carlos yarn, I actually used double-pointed needles and knit this pair one at a time.
The second yarn was made with a sock blank from Black Market Wool. I love both pairs.
Just for fun, I knit a little beaver who is wearing a little scarf out of some scrap yarn, in another attempt to find out what kind of scrapy project is the one for me. I'm not sure that I have the fortitude for these tiny ornament style stuffies, but now I can go forward with that information.
I knit a new toque, this is Everglade by Woolly Wormhead and the yarn was 100% wool in the colour Island Blue by The Wacky Windmill. I am super pleased with how it came out. I added a pom pom for whimsy, but no matter how hard I try to do a good job, my pom poms never really feel good an secure or even and fluffy.
And since I was in a hat knitting mood, I knit another toque, this one is Happy Happy, Joy Joy! by Melissa Stajda and I knit it out of my own handspun. The fibre I used was called The Cheshire Cat from The Wacky Windmill in Falkland.
I worked on a new sock in Regia sock colourway designed by Arne & Carlos the colour called Tokke, which I learned is the name of a municipality and a river in Telemark county, Norway and maybe their inspiration for this design. It is lovely and I am enjoying knitting on it.
This month I am also knitting on another sock blank. It's a purchase from Black Market Wool. The little pops of bright colours are marvelous.
In the spirit of jumping on the bandwagon, I attempted a pattern that everyone is raving about which is Rose City Rollers by Mara Catherine Bryner. It's a fun free pattern offering an easy ankle sock with a roll-top that can be made with super variegated yarn and pops of colour. For me at this time, they required a bit more attention than I had to give and I think the size or the yarn I chose didn't have much give, so they ended up being too snug for my foot. I will not knit the second sock, but hopefully can try again in the future, because the socks I've seen others making are darling.
May is a good month. I see a pattern of being especially inspired to get crafty in May.
This month I knit some socks using a contrasting toe, heel, and cuff. This bright mini paired with a speckled skein was put together by Kim of The Wacky Windmill and it couldn't be more perfect. I used a heel flap with eye of the partridge.
Since I am so drawn to purple, a purple with a sprinkle of glitter was irresistible to me. I like this colourway so much, that everything I thought to pair it seemed to detract from the loveliness of the yarn. So I went with a single skein project, which was Menehune by Mel Ski.
I knit and finished a pair of socks in a Patons socks yarn I nabbed only because they were on sale. They come in 50 gram balls, so were conveniently ready to cast on without breaking out my yarn swift.
I started a new cross-stitch pattern! I actually bought a kit for this one because I was having trouble sourcing a similar fabric and I really wanted to try something different. This is 38 ct Crystal Cashel Linen in Chablis from Picture This Plus, which is glittery *gasp* be still my heart.
Hey I love a good challenge, I tried out brioche knitting this month, choosing a very simple pattern and pairing a light grey with pops of the darker contrasting colour, so I could really understand what was going on and wowza, brioche has pop! One day I hope to knit Stephen West pattern.
For socks this month, I had a gorgeous skein of blues and teals and the pattern called Maya Socks by Nina La Fountaine with its gentle waves really seemed like a match made in heaven. And the result is so good. This is an outstanding pattern that I hope to knit again.
I participated in a swap last month by sending a pair of knit socks away and I received a very gorgeous Swoon wall hanging in exchange. How lucky am I!?
A finished pair of socks using my favourite heel, a heel flap with eye of the partridge. Even though this is just yarn is just a Knit Picks yarn, I think they really nailed the speckles. These socks are a perfect finished for February for sure.
