Swatching!

I don't usually swatch, but I'm starting a baby project and wanted to perfect this pattern that I'm un-venting.  So, I took out my trusty winder (really, winding yarn into center-pull skeins needs to be less fun - NOT.) and found this!



I don't know a lot about spinning, but my hypothesis is this is the leader.  How often does this happen? Maybe we could calculate odds, and find out how lucky I am! I'm assuming that this doesn't happen very often.



Oh, the yarn I'm using is this new stuff from Cascade, "Pacific."  It is very soft, but sort of has an un-plying problem (anyone that's every used Caron Simply Soft probably knows what I'm describing.)  For a merino-acrylic mix, it has the feel of soft acrylic, but blocks out well.  Just from one swatch, I like it!



I like to keep my labels with my skeins, so here's a pick of my trick - a label extender - in case you were wondering how I did that.  As you work from the middle and the skein gets smaller, just move the tape.

Free Pattern - Sunflower

Originally, this pattern was supposed to be a whole scarf - tons of tiny sunflowers sewn together to make a stole.  But, I gave up on that - other projects got in the way.  I still want to make that stole, some day, maybe... eventually...

Anyway, these flowers would make a cute summer garland, or maybe a headband, or just knit up individually as coasters, brooches... whatever! The uses for knit flowers are seriously limitless.  I know.  I've made around a dozen of these puppies.  For amazing results, pair one with two knit leaves!

Anyway! Hope you enjoy this little pattern - it's more a set of notes than an actual 'pattern' - and if you make something totally inspired, let me know and I'll feature you! :)

My Random Monday - August 22nd

1.  My short skews are not going well.  I'm using the SKF technique - SWAG, Knit, Frog.  I know how to do it... generally. I'm just being a little discouraged by all this frogging! I think tonight I'm going to sit down and actually THINK about what I'm going to do instead of knitting and guessing.

2.  Lilac has been having lots of outside time.  She loves it!

3.  When Lilac is outside, I sit out on the porch, and I've been keeping my crafts in bowls and plates.  It's so soothing to sew the little petals onto my knit hedgehogs...

4.  I'm going back to school, but I'm not so sure what I'm going to do.  My plans for school were kind of ruined when my internship unexpectedly ended, but I'm trying to make the best of things, even though I'm not sure where I'm going to be living at school I bought some supplies today anyway :)

5.  Oh, I was published!

I designed this knit jellyfish last summer and submitted it to the Knitting Pattern-A-Day Calendar.  Well, the 2012 Calendar came out, and I'm innit! They even sent me a complimentary copy! SQUEE!

New Pattern for Sale: Pink Lemonade Socks!

I finally got a nice day to photograph my socks, and a good hour to load up the pattern, crop the pictures... etc, etc.

I LOVE these socks! What's great is they're one of those patterns that you can make without really thinking! The repeat is only four rows long, and you don't need a cable needle at all.

That's right, those aren't actually cables. 

I tried to keep the pattern simple, but there are some little details - like the transition from pattern to cuff.

And the heel flap - the pattern carries up it. Don't worry! It's charted as well as written.

Pattern Name: Pink Lemonade Socks

Yarn: Kertzer On Your Toes, 4-ply sock yarn

This pattern is available for download for $2.50 - You don't need a Ravelry account to check out, or even a paypal account - you can check out with a credit card :)

You can click the button below to get yours today! Or click any of the images in this post to go to the pattern page.

Call to Contribute: Fall 2011 DAL Mood Board!

I'm so excited that the Fall 2011 DAL theme has been decided! This round's theme is Fairytale, and the mood board already has a ton of fairytale-themed pictures up on it - I'm hosting mine up on this blog post :)

So, "Why do I care," you ask? If you're a Ravelry member, go to the DAL group and do either of two things:

1. Contribute a photo or image (if you so choose) to the mood board thread.
2. Go to the mood board thread and click "love" underneath the images that you like.

Even if you don't want to participate by designing in the DAL, you can still do either of these two things.  This helps make the group funner for the people that DO participate, so please consider if you have any free time :)

And if you don't care, can you guess which fairytales I'm thinking of?  No checking the thread! :P

Oh - one more really important thing! Submissions for the mood board close August 28th.  So, if you want to contribute or vote, that's when that ends.

My Random Tuesday

1. Yesterday I slept more than I was awake, though I did manage to work and visit with W.  But no blog, so I guess I'll post my updates today! :P

2. My WIPs are all coming along steadily.  I'm 95% done with my bead-along mitts, cast my second lifeline for my shawl (which I haven't shared yet :X) and ... well, I'm working on the socks. 

3.  The weather has been REALLY crummy every time W has come to visit, and I can't get anyone else to photograph my feet, so no nice photos of the socks yet.  I want to release the pattern on Friday, so fingers crossed that that will get done - but chances are I may have to wait until Monday.

4. I have fairytales on my brain... that's the current DAL theme! I'm going to do a post on it sometime this week, too! So many posts to write, so little time XD

5. You may notice the photos for this post are especially random.  Above is a cool embroidery I saw at the fair, and then at the top is a rainbow that graced our little street over the weekend.

My plans are as skewed as these socks!

First off, can tell you a little more about how much I LOVE this sock pattern?  This past week, I've been up late into the night knitting.  That makes me feel very, very bizarre.  I feel like a kid, hiding under the covers with a flashlight at night, but instead of a horror novel I've got... a sock.  I've never felt this way about a pattern - waiting to see what happens next!

But I realized something as I finished the heel of the sock.  Look at this.  This is, most definitely, not an ankle sock. It's not even a half-ankle sock.  W doesn't like long socks - he won't wear these. 

So, there are two foreseeable options.

1.) I make the sock according to the instructions, and hope one day W will wear them when I'm around to make me feel happy

2.) I figure out how to modify the pattern to make the sock work.  That involves frogging back to before the heel, and probably just knitting over and over until it works.

I'm leaning towards the second option, though I'm not quite sure how I'm going to manage it...

(I just thought of something, I /could/ steal the socks, but I feel like this would be cheating.  Also, I would have to frog back to the toe so that it wouldn't be baggy. So just as much work, really.)