New Interweave Knits Magazine!!!

Interweave Knits is one of my favorite knitting magazines and I just got the new one!!! I got an email from Shabby Sheep, here in Dallas and checked the patterns out online. I fell head over heels in love with Carol Feller's Leitmotif cardigan and couldn't click on 'bonus pictures' fast enough!!! I feel like I have been searching for exactly this pattern for a long time and now I need to find the perfect yarn. Other patterns I like in this issue are the Bavarian Tulip mittens (which I think I have yarn for, back in PA), Leyfi pullover, Peavey cardigan (who doesn't love all the color combination possibilities that the plaid offers? and, I love Mercedes Tarasovich-Clark's Girl Friday cardigan from Knitty, so I'm biased.) and last but not least I like Hoarfrost Mobius (because who can deny the urge to knit with wire and have it look that beautiful?). Another thing I really like about this issue is how pretty some of the non-knitted clothes are, the blouse shown with the Williamsburg cardigan is really pretty, the dress shown with the Sea and Sky shrug is adorable and I like the shirt shown with the Running-Stitch skirt. I give this issue an A+.

My current Artichaut shawl is going really well, I am extremely happy with the marriage between pattern and yarn, the fuzzy cashmere with the uber lacy-ness is making it come out very, very girly, but in a very, very good way. I am on the 3rd repeat and believe I will have plenty of yarn to finish 6 repeats! Almost half way there, then!

Cashmere, again

What do people think of using my Jojoland Cashmere 2-ply in a delicate lilac color to make Anne Hanson's beautiful Artichaut pattern? I have enough if I don't take back the second ball, which I never really thought I would do anyway; would you give back a ball of cashmere after you bought it? A silly thing to do, unless you need money for food. Although, cashmere is food for the soul, so maybe it's the same as buying food. I like that argument. I'll use it next time I pick up a ball of cashmere. Usually I don't even touch cashmere in my LYS because I know I can't afford it. Unless it's purple, then I touch it. And buy it. And love it. And knit it. I am not getting along with Juneberry, surely this is temporary and in a bit I will be typing my raves about that pattern (which I still think is really pretty and I want to knit), so maybe an $8 pattern is the surest fit for my dear, most beloved, treasured, perfect cashmere.

Summer Heat

Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you have all been waiting for: pictures of a finished Lilia! Shot on location at Grapevine Lake, Grapevine, Texas (just outside of Dallas). 108 degrees that day and the water was not much cooler. It was fun to sit and work on my tan though, especially with how little time I have to just chill...I need a different swimsuit though, when I untied my triangle bikini to get rid of those tan lines while maintaining modesty (at least to some degree), I swear, every boat on that lake was over to see how much of a tan I wanted! Anyway, I would have liked to take more pictures, but it was just so hot that the ones I do have barely got taken; I just didn't want to move.

I cast on for my Juneberry, got through chart 1 then hit chart 2. Chart 2's very, very complicated. You need your thinking cap on for that one, if it slips off even the smallest bit, you're doomed. Other people (including people I know) have made it through the treacherous waters of chart 2, but mentally I don't think I have it right now. I love the Juneberry shawl and will come back to it, but I need mindless, not mindful knitting...

Love Poem to Cashmere

Love poems can be
full of sappiness
but this one's for
cashmere,
and happiness.

Soft as a bunny,
lighter than air
stitch definition
so clear,
there is no compare.

Cashmere, you beauty,
you fiber queen,
I love you so much,
though you make
my wallet lean!

That is the worst poem you've ever read, right? Well, it comes from the heart, so remember that as you laugh. Most love poems are a bit painful to read anyway...I can't spend too much time being a poet, I must knit! The inspiration came from my lovely Jojoland Cashmere 2 ply, which I am using to make Juneberry Triangle, by the talented Jared Flood. So far I have only got to row 8 of chart 1, because I had to spill forth the truth my heart yearned to have the world know about my feeling for cashmere in (horrible) poem form. I am very pleased so far, but that was a somewhat obvious statement, eh?

FINISHED!!!!!!!!

Lilia has been carefully cast off using an Estonian bind off (the kind that Elizabeth Freeman recommends for Laminaria and Aeolian: k1, *k1 slip both back to left needle, k2tog, rep from * across) to match the bind off I used on all the edging points. It is blocking on the floor of our extended stay hotel room, on a clean sheet, of course! I love the ritual of blocking, though getting the perfect shape sometimes drives me crazy. I will post pics ASAP, because I know you're all dying to see it finished. I am. It took much longer than other shawls I have made, but I think the end result will be worth it. It was all I could do not to go out and knock on all the doors on our floor and demand that random strangers admire my knitting.

Anticipation!

Okay, I am on the LAST wedge of my beautiful Lilia! I pinned a section out to see what it will look like blocked because I am impatient and I am terrifically excited about this one! It is the biggest piece of lace knitting I have done, and I am excited, excited, excited and can't wait to post some lovely pictures here, check back soon!

Sweet Lily Obsession

I have 8 more wedges to do on my Sweet Lily Shawl (Interweave Knits, Spring 2009)and I am super excited about this one! I am calling in 'Lilia', Russian for lily of the valley, because of the lace edging which repeats across the bottom of the shawl. The shawl is knit in wedges, using short rows, which were very confusing until I finished the 3rd wedge and wrote down how many sts remained unworked at the end of each row. After that, this project graduated from 'no talking while I count' to 'watch tv/chitter chatter' knitting.

The yarn, Madelinetosh Lace, came from my stash, it was bought in Vermont, at Kaleidoscope Yarns in Essex Junction. The shop is literally a house of yarn, with each room devoted to a different weight/fiber. I would really like to have a reason to get back there. Vermont is really far away from Plano, Texas though...Try 1 day and 5 hours away, through 8 states!

I love Mad Tosh. I love love love the colors! They are like colors straight out of a dream and they make me very happy whenever I see them at my LYS. The color I am using for Lilia is 'Thyme', though it reminded me more of parsley, like in Rapunzel. Not to brag at all, but it's the same color as my eyes! The fabric that the lace weight yarn knit on size US8s is delicate and feathery, almost like mousse. It feels delicious against my skin...sigh...

All of this writing has made me really want to get back to knitting, so I'll catch you later!

Oh, and Happy 4th!

Hello World!!

A new blogger is born! I knitting lace, photographing lace and gushing about lace...and if you're reading this, you do too! I'll keep you updated as to what I obsessing over next!! Peace and happy knitting!