Gonna be a Shawl Showdown

Last night I didn't knit, for the first time in I-don't-even-know.  I have this WIP sitting here:

I started this cardigan last January with some awesome gift yarn from Kris Kringle (still love the yarn YAY!), and at the start I was inspired by the interesting construction and the prospect of a functional sweater at the end.  Admittedly it was a bit of a grind to get through the parts: some ripping out, the barrier of seaming looming over me...

so it hibernated for a year exactly! sigh
And I finally seamed the shoulders and sides this weekend!  yay

Now I pick up a mess of stitches, only to bind off on the very next row ohhhhhh yuck.

NEVER MIND THIS MESS.  TIME FOR A DISTRACTION!

So!  I'm planning a Shawl Showdown, with an amazing Ravenclaw housemate, starting on Star Wars Day!  It's all part of a voluntary Shawl Battle Royale for spring term, because apparently we have nothing better to do and we're all stark Raven mad.

We've chosen to duel with Fall of Leaves [Rav]
 a free!  pattern designed by Stephanie Hogendoorn.
'Twill be EPIC.  First one to the finish line wins a pattern!

Mot-less Monday: Whaaaat is it?

Sleepy Saturday (FO: Catoosa)

This early April is a world of slowing down and gearing up:
the HPKCHC [Rav] has a break month and the fourth annual Knit & Crochet Blog Week is less than two weeks out.

So until the madness bursts, we're laying low...  making shapes out of crayons and eating Goldfish crackers and knitting along on a scraptastic modular WIP that's almost four years old.

Punkin has titled this photo "Minnie Mouse and crayons and Mickey Mouse"

There's also a small squishy toy, but it's not hanging out with us:

Moby the Whale [Rav] by Raynor Gellatly; knit with less than 10 yards of Lorna's Laces Swirl Chunky in colorway 34 Tahoe

The pattern was written for DK or worsted weight, but I've upsized it for maximum grabability.  I've named her Catoosa after Catoosa, Oklahoma's famed Blue Whale along Route 66.  She's currently winging her way to Kansas City to join the well-appointed whale-themed nursery of a teleworking colleague's kiddo.

FO: From Russia With Fun!

I wish I could take credit for that tagline, but it was all Tetris's idea:

Tetris Baby Blanket [Rav] by GracieLou; knit with 944yds of Knit Picks Comfy Worsted (colorways Carrot, Fairy Tale, Lilac, Marina, Marlin, Peapod, and Rosehip)

TGIF: thank goodness it's free!, because whoa.  This was my first intarsia project evar and while I got used to it, I don't think I'll ever want to do one again.  Especially in a cotton-acrylic blend.  T.e.d.i.o.u.s like crazy.

 

I hate wasting yarn, so instead of bobbin-ing up the yarn for the sections, I opted to do some knitting backward to keep the right side of the work facing me + careful rearranging of full skeins.  It was... fine.

I was super great and not crazy.  No, really.  Just... fine.

 

And then -- AND THEN -- after I'd finished all the intarsia, I had to teach myself some crochetin' stuff for the border.  Crochet eats yarn like it tastes like chocolate; I used more yarn on that 4" border than I did on the entirety of the intarsia (469yds vs 475yds), which is BANANAS to me.

pre border blocking

...I do really like the finished product, which has made its home with a sweet bebe and her wonderful parents...

...but never again.

FO: Next Stop Everything

I'm a brand-new impassioned Whovian, so this shawl came into my life at just the right time...  I'd like to think the Doctor had something to do with that.

Bigger on the Inside [Rav] by Kate Atherley; knit with less than three skeins of Knit Picks Gloss Fingering in colorway Winter Night

Q: how much do I love awesome free! patterns?  A: so very much.  This was excellent travel knitting; since the top lace part is knit from end-to-end before the TARDISi are picked up later, it was like one long wibbly-wobbly scarf that could be rolled up and stowed easily.

I swapped out the TARDIS lamp bobbles for some of the cobalt beads I had left over from that one shawl and that other shawl. 

I think it's perfect in every way.  Just like David Tennant.

 

FO: Crown of Roses (Swaperrific)

Early this month I participated in my first swap evar -- a secret swap with a board game theme!!  We had the month of February to craft... but I mostly thought, as is my wont.  I ran out of money before I could get her a game, which was unfortunate, so I tied everything I did send into board games somehow.  There was eventual crafting and packing and shipping...  my swap partner in Nova Scotia has finally received the package I sent -- so here it is!

carefully packed

1. Old Bay Seasoning: a Maryland original, I thought it would be useful for another coastal dweller
2. Red Zinger Herbal Tea from Celestial Seasonings: yummy, lots of health benefits, and not available in Canada!
3. brown beret -- see below!
4. Dancing Leaf Farms merino sock yarn: it's local and it's amazing
5. the roses are the same ones I mentioned that other time

ta-da!

 

Christmas Rose Hat [Rav] by Linda Irving-Bell; knit with a skein+ of Lion Brand Lion Wool Solids in colorway Cocoa

This had a dual purpose of providing her with a hat and getting an allergy trigger out of my stash.  I dubbed this hat the "Crown of Roses" to tie it in with the board game of the same name; unbeknownst to me, my swap partner is a specialist in Tudor history!  My photos really wash out the true color, which is actually a super pretty rich brown (like in the swap photo).

After I shipped my package out, I allowed myself to opened the package I received.  The beauty of a secret swap is the different identities of spoiler and spoilee: I had no clue who was sending me stuff...

mitts are The Boyfriend Gloves [Rav] by Zabet Kempfert

...and what awesome stuff I received!! Crocheted mitts in soft hypoallergenic yarn in my favorite shade of my favorite color (they were some of her very first crocheted anythings), 85% dark Trader Joe’s chocolate (this is just the box, the chocolate is long gone, of course), aaaaaaand DOCTOR WHO: THE CARD GAME!!!  I plotzed.

Swaps are awesome.  Yay.  :)

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *~

p.s. by request from readers, I'm going to be restarting the Knitwear at the Movies feature!  I got a little burnt out for a while there, but it's time to come back soon, I think -- stay tuned!
p.p.s. I want to feature some TV knits (KniTV, in a similar manner to KATM), but I'm having a hard time structuring the possible posts (by season? by episode? by character?), so if anybody has suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them -- kthxby!

Mot-less Monday: Intarsia Backside Front

FO: Classy Engorgio Shawl

Shawl 12 of 12 Shawls for 2012!  Finished in March 2013, naturally.

Crescent [Rav] by Lauren Irving; knit with over 3 skeins of Knit Picks Swish Worsted in colorway Indigo Heather

This pattern was written for fingering weight yarn, but I upped it to worsted for several reasons:

1. I had the yarn in stash;
2. I wanted more coverage for the same yardage; and most importantly:
3. it was Hail-Mary desperation to complete the 12 Shawls challenge, cast on right before Christmas

The final product has a wingspan of five feet, and I'm really happy with it... soooo Imma just keep this for myself.  It gets cold in my office building.

 

Jury's still out on crescent shawls vs. triangle shawls.
I may be leaning slightly in favor of triangle shawls for the arm coverage/keeping warm factor.
Hmm, but crescent shawls do have that attractive scarf-like quality.
Infirm of purpose!

February Fuggedaboutit FOs

OK, so, more stuff I did last month and even before that,
because that's how I roll!

basically exactly like this, with shorter hair

I started some more Toddler Flashdance back in December and finished it in January:

 

Happy Legs [Rav] by Dani Sunshine; knit with less than a skein of Lion Brand Microspun in colorway French Vanilla

Other legwarmers I've made for Punkin Q. Pie have been made in shrinky-type quasi-feltable yarn (here and here), so they're pretty beat up and hard to get onto her legs as she gets older.  These have the opposite problem: they stretch out a little more with each washing and end up pooled around her ankles within an hour of putting them on.  At least she'll have an opportunity to grow into them?

And now, with no transition to mention or explanation afterward, cabley superwash beret!

 

Brambles Beret [Rav] by Amanda Muscha; knit with 1.5 skeins of Knit Picks Swish Worsted in colorway Squirrel Heather

There were projects to donate to charity...

 

Simple newborn hat with a touch of lace [Rav] by Ginny Sheller; knit with Lion Brand Microspun in colorway French Vanilla

* MODS: added an extra lace repeat, V-shaped and offset

Burl Afghan Square [Rav] by Rycrafty Patterns; knit with half a skein of Knit Picks Swish Worsted in colorway Lawn

* MODS: sized down to 8" sq (from 1 sq foot)

...and projects for funsies:

 

 

The Short Rose [Rav] by SarahLouise MacAdie; knit with < 20yds each of Lion Brand LB Collection Superwash Merino in colorways 141 Wild Berry, 170 Dijon, and 174 Spring Leaf

Monster Corner Bookmark [Rav] by Christel Brooks; £0.75 GBP; knit with 13 yds of Lion Brand Sock-Ease in colorway 200 Toffee and 2 yards of Berroco Comfort Baby in colorway 4700 Chalk; beads are 2/0 cobalt Czech glass

OH, and right now I'm working on an intarsia baby blanket and a shawl with TARDISes.  Toodles!


~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *~
Happy birthday to the woman who GAVE ME LIFE.  :)

Questions I Ask about February (Shawl FOs)

Guess who didn't post any words last month?  Didja guess yet?

This surprises no one.

Remember that January shawl that needed better pictures?

This one right here.

Took photos and handed it off to its rightful owner, doot-do-doo!  My mom (hi Mama!) helped me realize that while 2012's shawls were all about saying thank you to some of the awesome people I know, 2013's shawls are already trending in the comfort-for-people-going-through-tough-stuff direction.

 

Arroyo [Rav] by Sarah H. Wolf; knit with about 4 skeins of 

Karabella Yarns Aurora 8 in colorway 8167 Blue

This was a fantastic knit and I'm going to make another one some day... maybe even later this year, who knows!

Remember that alpaca firework-looking shawl from 2012?

When we last saw our heroine...

Finished, blocked, shipped (well, personally escorted), delivered!

 

Echo Flower Shawl [Rav] by Jenny Johnson Johnen; knit with 3/4 skein of Misti Alpaca Hand Paint Lace in colorway LP10 Red Rover

This took fooooorever AND it triggered my allergy along the way AND there were beads beads beads for days AND it was totally worth it, because its recipient deserves it like crazy (she knits, so she knows).

Were there any more February finished knits?  What does March have in store?  Am I just stacking the deck with rhetorical questions?
All (well, some) will be revealed tomorrow.
Gonna go take care of a sick kid now, byeeeeeee

Mot-less Monday: Color Swirl