Three Scarves Fulled & the Six Foot Tall Lightbox

I love these two pictures. They were both taken in our porch which we hardly ever use (apart from storing junk in!).


The light in there is perfect, kind of like a 6 foot tall lightbox! Amazing... where oh where have I been to miss this one!

Just listed the wrap at the front and the scarf at the back in my Etsy shop. The middle one will be listed later on this week.

I'm just finishing off some felted pouches for Nintendo DS lite games, cameras etc.. and will hopefully be able to add them tomorrow.

Thanks everyone for your feedback on the felted scarf. It's really appreciated!

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Knitting: Icarus Shawl washed & blocked

I can't believe it's been 3 weeks since I last posted. Eek! Well, I have been busy.... busy riding the knitting mojo wave and making the most of it while it lasts. Seriously, you will not believe how much I have knit in the past few weeks. Oodles!

Here's the first of a long line of FOs and I'll post piccies of the rest as and when I get a moment.

I'm so pleased with this shawl and will definitely knit one for myself in 4ply or sockyarn. I have to admit that I'm a little less than thrilled with the yarn. There wasn't much give when blocking this shawl, unlike the FCS. Perhaps it's because the yarn was a laceweight single ply as opposed to the 4ply sockyarn that I used for FCS. Well, whatever. I think it looks great, even though the points are not as pointy!

I blocked it as hard as I could and hopefully my ISE6 pal will like it. For more information and details about this pattern, check out my Flickr photostream.

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Comfort Shawl (knitting daily)

I finally got round to blocking the Comfort Shawl by Sandi Wiseheart on Knitting Daily, which I started 6 weeks ago. If only I had actually been 'knitting daily', it would have been finished a lot sooner. Never mind. It will be winging its way to Spain this week.

This shawl was my first dip into lace shawl knitting and it gave me the confidence and motivation to try something more involved... namely the Icarus Shawl and Forest Canopy Shawl!

I wanted to retain a comfortable and casual feel and the Denim Aran was perfect for this. Plus at over 230 yds per 100g ball, and having only used 1 1/2 balls, it was a very affordable knit. The yarn is a blend of acrylic (60%) cotton (25%) and wool (15%) so it isn't a complete affront to yarn snobs!! ;) I am pleased that the shawl has blocked so well considering it isn't 100% wool.

It seems that I am on a roll at the moment and have found my knitting mojo. Does anybody fancy a rub?

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ISE6: Forest Canopy Shawl finished

Listen very carefully, I shall say this only once more... I absolutely adore this pattern and can't recommend it enough as a great beginners lace shawl project. It would also make a quick knit for more experienced lace knitters.

To my surprise, my non-attention span coped with the pattern repeat. I took my time and completed the shawl in two weeks. I imagine the next one will fly off the needles (she says hopefully!).

FCS grows pretty quickly and I can't wait to start another one using DK weight yarn and bigger needles.

Blocking this shawl was fun, if a little bit of a challenge. I've never blocked a triangle shawl before and I got there in the end thanks to Yarnharlot, Eunnyjang and Morehouse Merino.

I do hope my ISE pal will like it.

• Pattern: Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl by Susan Pierce Lawrence
  Needles: 4.5mm circular needles, knit loosely
  Yarn: 100g of GeminiKnits sockyarn in 'Pacific', 75g used
  Pattern repeats: Twelve
  Blocked size: 51" x 21"

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Knitting: Shawls & Caplets (with PHOTOS)

I recently finished the 'Comfort Shawl' for my mum. When mum fell and broke her arm and leg a few weeks ago, I immediately wanted to knit her something. I knew she needed a bed jacket that she could wear with the ease of a shawl. Thanks to the clever shaping of the 'Comfort Shawl' it sits comfortably on your shoulders. It was an enjoyable knit and I especially liked how it was constructed. I will try to post some photos later when things are a little quieter here.

Mum has had both of her casts removed - the leg cast was rmoved after 4 weeks and the arm after 6 weeks. Amazing! She's like a giant bandaid and heals so quickly. Lucky woman. The weather is still a little cool in the evenings in Spain so she should be able to get a couple of months wear out of the shawl before putting it away for the Autumn/Winter.

With my new found confidence for shawl knitting, I decided it was time to tackle something bigger. So after a bit of investigation, I chose the Icarus Shawl from The Best of Interweave Knits (the one on the cover). I'm about 25% in, using a laceweight merino yarn that I bought last year from Ebay (I think the seller was called 'Yarn Wise'). I am enjoying knitting this top down shawl and it feels right, you know what I mean?

Not happy with one WIP on the needles, I cast on the Forest Canopy Shawl this morning which I purchased and downloaded yesterday. I'm knitting this in 'Gemini Knits' sockyarn and the pattern is so easy to follow (I can see how more experienced knitters find this a 'quick' knit). What was I so afraid of?


Thankfully both of these shawls are progressing well so far. I clearly wasn't ready for lace shawls last year. Maybe this year I am!

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Knitting: ISE5 Update

This is my 3rd International Scarf Exchange (ISE) and once again it feels like my first. I start off with the best of intentions - researching, stalking, planning. Then indecision kicks in, followed by a confidence crisis, topped off with a pinch of performance anxiety.

Best intentions are fine but they're not very productive. So having coasted through a myriad of emotions and possibilities this week, I think I may have narrowed it down - the pattern anyway. I'm desperate to have a go at a lace scarf which incorporates beads. Sadly I cannot cope with a lace pattern with more than a 4 row repeat. This is due in part to my impatient nature and also down to the medication I take. Roughly translated, I have the attention span of a gnat!

Lace knitting is supposed to be intuitive (I had a discussion with myself about this when I made the Backyard Leaves scarf) and many people who dare to attempt the beautiful shawls out there just amaze me. It's not a complete loss since I can identify where the YOs are and whether to use a K2tog or a SSK on the small pattern repeats, but that's my limit.

At this point, my plan is to cannibalise some of the lace patterns that I like. I think I've narrowed it down to two contenders - Yarnharlot's snowdrop shawl - I think the center panel would make a nice panel for a scarf, and Sivia Harding's diamond lace bookmark (which looks coincidentally a lot like the Angel Pearls Beaded scarf.

I had thought about making the Heartstrings Beaded Lace Scarf II (left) for my pal but I really don't think I could cope with it just now. It's certainly one I would love myself and I fell in love with it when I saw a few versions made during the ISE4. Maybe next time round I'll tell my pal that I like it alot!

One other scarf/shawl that I wouldn't mind trying (eventually) is the Lady Eleanor Entrelac Shawl from Scarf Style. There's something magical about it - perhaps it's the yarn, or the knotted fringe. I'm not sure, but I do love it.

The next hurdle is yarn. I'm trying to decide whether a lacy whispy scarf with beads or a heaver DK weight scarf with beads. I'm working on some swatches at the moment (yes, me, swatching, amazing!) with everything from laceweight to DK. Guess I'll wait and see which one turns out best.

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Clapotis? Not quite....

I found this link on the Angel Yarns Knitting Forums for a 'Mini Clapotis'. The pattern which is on Midnightknitter's site, is an adaptation of Knitty.com's Clapotis.

This is going on my RATHER LARGE to do list.

I've always wanted to make a Clapotis but I'm terrified by all the setting up rows - it looks so daunting. I figure if I make a mini one, it only needs two balls of wool and I can practice the technique without feeling guilty if I get it wrong.

At the end of the day it's just a drop stitch scarf knit on the diagonal. Right?

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