Saturday, September 29, 2007
That's what happens once school starts.
:SIGH:
I *have* been knitting on the Peace Fleece EDC! In fact, I have the back peice and the front panels done, and the sleeves (which I'm knitting both at the same time flat) are 2/3 of the way done. But, alas, I have no pics.
One of the coolest things is that I dropped my gague swatch and the natural wood buttons that came with the kit off at my Mom's place, and she's going to hand-paint the buttons to coordinate with the tones of the yarn. That "special touch" the sweater needs? COVERED!
A big reason I haven't posted much lately is Ravelry. I finally got in! YAY! But, it truely is the "black hole of time," and entering things into my 'notebook' there and spending WAY too much time in the forums and browsing other people's projects has eaten up a lot of time (and energy.)
The school year is well underway, with our fourth week under our belt. Things are going well, but with the Michigan State budget issues right now, and the threatened State government shut down, it's a bit (??) tense too. They've threatened to JUST NOT PAY the October 22 School-funding payment unless the State is back up and running by 10/16. Seriously now. Skip the payment? I can understand DELAYING it, which would be bad enough, but how in the H*%# do they expect schools to eat that much money when they've strapped us every year for the past (at least) 10 years?
Oh, and little man broke his arm on the playground at school during recess on the Monday of the third week. He's none-to-happy about missing out on critical monkey bars time, not to mention his gymnastics lessons are on hold until he's given the all-clear from the orthopedist. :sigh:
I *have* been knitting on the Peace Fleece EDC! In fact, I have the back peice and the front panels done, and the sleeves (which I'm knitting both at the same time flat) are 2/3 of the way done. But, alas, I have no pics.
One of the coolest things is that I dropped my gague swatch and the natural wood buttons that came with the kit off at my Mom's place, and she's going to hand-paint the buttons to coordinate with the tones of the yarn. That "special touch" the sweater needs? COVERED!
A big reason I haven't posted much lately is Ravelry. I finally got in! YAY! But, it truely is the "black hole of time," and entering things into my 'notebook' there and spending WAY too much time in the forums and browsing other people's projects has eaten up a lot of time (and energy.)
The school year is well underway, with our fourth week under our belt. Things are going well, but with the Michigan State budget issues right now, and the threatened State government shut down, it's a bit (??) tense too. They've threatened to JUST NOT PAY the October 22 School-funding payment unless the State is back up and running by 10/16. Seriously now. Skip the payment? I can understand DELAYING it, which would be bad enough, but how in the H*%# do they expect schools to eat that much money when they've strapped us every year for the past (at least) 10 years?
Oh, and little man broke his arm on the playground at school during recess on the Monday of the third week. He's none-to-happy about missing out on critical monkey bars time, not to mention his gymnastics lessons are on hold until he's given the all-clear from the orthopedist. :sigh:
Monday, September 3, 2007
Peace Fleece Progress
I've been plugging along on the back piece of the Peace Fleece Cardigan, and now have about 17 1/2 inches done (it needs to reach 23 1/2 inches* to go on to the next step!) I think I've chosen that to work on right now because it's pretty mindless stockinette, and my brain is on overload with school starting back up and even the relatively easy Cashemere Scarf lace repeats are too much for me right now. Plus, I'm catching up on smut TV, and I can "knit-a-row/purl-a-row" without thinking too much, which I need when I'm in this kind of mode.
(*Yes, I'm fiddling with the pattern a bit. The size Large instructions say 25 inches, but when I measured MYSELF, I still have to admit while I'm a Large in girth, I'm definately not a Large in length, thus I'm using the Medium size length measurements and melding them with the Large girth. :sigh:)
(*Yes, I'm fiddling with the pattern a bit. The size Large instructions say 25 inches, but when I measured MYSELF, I still have to admit while I'm a Large in girth, I'm definately not a Large in length, thus I'm using the Medium size length measurements and melding them with the Large girth. :sigh:)
I took this picture when I had reached about 9 inches, but I'm too lazy to take another progress pic, since it's basically just a bigger rectangle at this point. Once something interesting starts to take shape, I'll snap more photos. (Oh, and it's not BLUE as this photo implies, it's WAY more purple than this! With tiny bright-pink flecks too! Much closer to the yarn/pattern color below, which I took with more natural lighting. This one is way-off-color.)
Monday, August 27, 2007
Terrible case of Project Polygamy!
I ordered some Peace Fleece yarn (actually, a kit to make the Everyday Cardigan Sweater) and it arrived today. Like I need another project, but I JUST CAN'T HELP MYSELF from casting on a gauge swatch! It's "just" a little gauge swatch, right?
Eye candy
Friday, August 24, 2007
Cashmere Goodness
OMG! This stuff is like knitting with HEAVEN! I bought this scarf kit at the Fiber Festival (don't ask how much $!) and it is SO DREAMY to knit up! The pattern is called "Crest of the Wave" lace, with a garter ridge edging. I can't even tell you how soft this stuff is! The yarn is 100% American Cashmere, 2-ply laceweight from Rabbit Tree Farm.
Now that the Mystery Stoles are done, I need to finish little-man's Wallaby (it's probably 95% done) and a few other things, but I can't put this scarf down right now. I've knitted another 2 repeats since I took this picture a half-hour ago, and I'm seriously addicted. So, I think the scarf comes first (unless the pattern gets too repetative, which is a possibility) then finishing some UFO's. ("unfinished objects" in the knitting world! :tee hee:)
In the meantime, I'm dreaming in Cashmere!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Both Shawls DONE!
Black shawl is DONE! You can't see them here clearly, but this shawl has peacock-green shiny beads. (They didn't photograph well at ALL!)
1. Tip & body
2. Wing Detail
3. Full Shot
4. BOTH shawls! "Odette & Odile" a.ka. "Yin & Yang"
1. Tip & body
2. Wing Detail
3. Full Shot
4. BOTH shawls! "Odette & Odile" a.ka. "Yin & Yang"
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Fiber Festial and ONE FINISHED STOLE!
Today was the annual Michigan Fiber Festival in Allegan. I was so proud of myself, I only spent an arm instead of an arm and a leg! :tee hee: Seriously, I stayed under budget, even though I bought a skein of cashemere (and pattern) to make the most lucious scarf, a new bag, a shawl pin, and some wool wash. NOT BAD considering all of the high-ticket items I had my eye on. What I really want/need is a working spinning wheel so I can take advantage of the gorgeous fibers they have there every year.
This year, I brought a friend, a fellow teacher (who happens to be the art teacher, so you can imagine her excitement upon finding out about said festival!) and we had a great time ambling from booth to booth, enjoying the eye-candy Angora rabbits, petting an Alpaca or two and watching a sheep-shearing. She got TONS of supplies to do some felting (which it totally new to her, she's trying this as yet-another-hobby like most of us crafty/artsy folks!) both wet felting and needle felting.
In other news, Mystery Stole 3- White is DONE!
Knitted, washed, and blocked! I bought a 1-inch thick 4' x 8' sheet of insulation (with foil backing on both sides, so it doesn't absorb any water) at the mega-home center yesterday. THAT was a trick to get in the mini-van! Thank goodness I was alone (and that I'm short!) since I had to fold down the back bench, both of the kids mid-row seats, and put both front seats all the way forward to get it in and close the hatch. I covered one side of the insulation with an old twin sheet (pink, of course, from princess' collection!) using duct tape and now I have a portable blocking board! No more mattresses for MOI!
By the way, the "Mystery" theme is "Swan Lake." According to the designer,
"First performed in 1877 as The Lake of the Swans, in Moscow, Russia, it was not an immediate success. The score, written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was originally deemed "undanceable" and too complicated for a ballet. Several revisions and rewrites were made of the score and the one performed with today's productions of Swan Lake is a revision of Tchaikovsky's original score by Riccardo Drigo for an 1895 performance.
The story begins with Prince Siegfried's birthday. He receives a crossbow as a gift from his parents and is told that since he is of age, he must marry. His response to this is to take his crossbow and his friends and go into the woods to hunt. As he sees a flock of swans flying over, he waits near a lake for the swans to land. As the swans land however, he sees that they are in fact women. He learns that the evil sorcerer Von Rothbart has turned the princess Odette and her maidens into swans. By day they are swans, but at night they resume their human form, only to become swans again at dawn. Some versions have the swan to human transformation occurring at midnight. Prince Siegfried dances with Odette and falls in love with her. He intends to announce his love for her and declare his intention to marry her at the ball the following night to be held in his honor. This will break the spell on Odette and return her and her maidens to their human form permanently.
The following night at the ball Von Rothbart (who has found out about the Prince's intentions) arrives with his own daughter, Odile. Odile is dressed exactly as Odette, but she wears black instead of white. The prince doesn't recognize that Odile is not his love and, not paying attention to the time doesn't realize that Odette is still a swan even as he dances with Odile. He declares his love to Odile and pledges to marry her. At that moment he realizes that it is only now time for Odette to regain her human form and that he has been tricked. Odette, realizing that she has been condemned to live her life as a cursed swan, drowns herself in the lake. Prince Siegfried, in grief, also throws himself into the lake.
The stole begins with the traditional lace pattern “Wings of the Swan” that I used in Leda’s Dream. Only one repeat of the pattern is made before it is split in half and continues up the sides of the point and along the edges of the first two thirds of the stole as a border. The large decorative motif that many of you saw as faces, insects, dragons, and other creatures in is merely a decorative motif with swirls and curls to fill the space. The honeycomb pattern is another pattern used to fill the space and not necessarily symbolizing anything in particular. The following motif that has a floral appearance is the traditional Shetland lace design “Cat’s Paw.” This design is usually worked as a vertical insertion, but I used it as a scattered, all over design in this stole in reference to a particular dance in the Swan Lake ballet. Le Danse des Petits Cygnes or Dance of the Little Swans is one of the most famous parts of the ballet. When Siegfried meets Odette and her maidens, there are several dances by the swan maidens, but this one is done by four dancers, each holding to the next one, moving in unison doing the pas de chat step. Pas de Chat means literally step of the cat, so using the Cat’s Paw lace design seemed natural in this stole. The final third of the stole is a wing. It obviously fits as the swan part of the theme, but the single wing with the more formal first part of the stole also alludes to Odette’s cursed existence as both swan and princess."
Okay, eye candy pics!
1. Done- unblocked
2. Soaking in Euclan
3. Full view
4. Wing detail
5. Mid section & join
6. Tip
This year, I brought a friend, a fellow teacher (who happens to be the art teacher, so you can imagine her excitement upon finding out about said festival!) and we had a great time ambling from booth to booth, enjoying the eye-candy Angora rabbits, petting an Alpaca or two and watching a sheep-shearing. She got TONS of supplies to do some felting (which it totally new to her, she's trying this as yet-another-hobby like most of us crafty/artsy folks!) both wet felting and needle felting.
In other news, Mystery Stole 3- White is DONE!
Knitted, washed, and blocked! I bought a 1-inch thick 4' x 8' sheet of insulation (with foil backing on both sides, so it doesn't absorb any water) at the mega-home center yesterday. THAT was a trick to get in the mini-van! Thank goodness I was alone (and that I'm short!) since I had to fold down the back bench, both of the kids mid-row seats, and put both front seats all the way forward to get it in and close the hatch. I covered one side of the insulation with an old twin sheet (pink, of course, from princess' collection!) using duct tape and now I have a portable blocking board! No more mattresses for MOI!
By the way, the "Mystery" theme is "Swan Lake." According to the designer,
"First performed in 1877 as The Lake of the Swans, in Moscow, Russia, it was not an immediate success. The score, written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was originally deemed "undanceable" and too complicated for a ballet. Several revisions and rewrites were made of the score and the one performed with today's productions of Swan Lake is a revision of Tchaikovsky's original score by Riccardo Drigo for an 1895 performance.
The story begins with Prince Siegfried's birthday. He receives a crossbow as a gift from his parents and is told that since he is of age, he must marry. His response to this is to take his crossbow and his friends and go into the woods to hunt. As he sees a flock of swans flying over, he waits near a lake for the swans to land. As the swans land however, he sees that they are in fact women. He learns that the evil sorcerer Von Rothbart has turned the princess Odette and her maidens into swans. By day they are swans, but at night they resume their human form, only to become swans again at dawn. Some versions have the swan to human transformation occurring at midnight. Prince Siegfried dances with Odette and falls in love with her. He intends to announce his love for her and declare his intention to marry her at the ball the following night to be held in his honor. This will break the spell on Odette and return her and her maidens to their human form permanently.
The following night at the ball Von Rothbart (who has found out about the Prince's intentions) arrives with his own daughter, Odile. Odile is dressed exactly as Odette, but she wears black instead of white. The prince doesn't recognize that Odile is not his love and, not paying attention to the time doesn't realize that Odette is still a swan even as he dances with Odile. He declares his love to Odile and pledges to marry her. At that moment he realizes that it is only now time for Odette to regain her human form and that he has been tricked. Odette, realizing that she has been condemned to live her life as a cursed swan, drowns herself in the lake. Prince Siegfried, in grief, also throws himself into the lake.
The stole begins with the traditional lace pattern “Wings of the Swan” that I used in Leda’s Dream. Only one repeat of the pattern is made before it is split in half and continues up the sides of the point and along the edges of the first two thirds of the stole as a border. The large decorative motif that many of you saw as faces, insects, dragons, and other creatures in is merely a decorative motif with swirls and curls to fill the space. The honeycomb pattern is another pattern used to fill the space and not necessarily symbolizing anything in particular. The following motif that has a floral appearance is the traditional Shetland lace design “Cat’s Paw.” This design is usually worked as a vertical insertion, but I used it as a scattered, all over design in this stole in reference to a particular dance in the Swan Lake ballet. Le Danse des Petits Cygnes or Dance of the Little Swans is one of the most famous parts of the ballet. When Siegfried meets Odette and her maidens, there are several dances by the swan maidens, but this one is done by four dancers, each holding to the next one, moving in unison doing the pas de chat step. Pas de Chat means literally step of the cat, so using the Cat’s Paw lace design seemed natural in this stole. The final third of the stole is a wing. It obviously fits as the swan part of the theme, but the single wing with the more formal first part of the stole also alludes to Odette’s cursed existence as both swan and princess."
Okay, eye candy pics!
1. Done- unblocked
2. Soaking in Euclan
3. Full view
4. Wing detail
5. Mid section & join
6. Tip
I can't wait to finish the black stole and show it off too! (It should show up better against the bubble-gum pink background!)
Until next time!
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