Mystery Stole #3

I've decided to join the MASSES of cool kids participating in the Mystery Stole 3 Knitalong. Signups are open until 6 July, so what are you waiting for? Don't be scared! Lace isn't hard, though it requires some concentration. If you can do yarnovers and k2togs, you can do lace. If you haven't done any lace knitting before, try something with DK/sport/fingering or worsted weight yarn and big needles. Some folks recommend Branching Out, though the Airy Scarf (or whatever it's called) in Last-Minute Knitted Gifts is easier, I think, and could be adapted to larger yarn/needles.

So, like I said, what are you waiting for?

I'm going to use some laceweight merino (Madil Super Due - not much down the google-hole for this one, which is interesting) I picked up on sale a couple of weeks ago. I nabbed a skein of cream and one of charcoal grey.

Now, which to knit? Melanie, our fearless MS3 leader is doing her stole in white Zephyr with clear beads, so I was leaning towards the cream, though I had intended to knit a shawl of some sorts with it and then try my hand at dip-dying to get a lovely gradation from neck edge to point. But then I thought about how I would get more use out of a grey shawl, though I had bought that with my BFF, who has been my super support through all this crud, in mind, as grey is her thing. I'd really like to use something from the stash, and Melanie says a smooth yarn is better than something with fuzz, so KSH is out. Her white looks so pretty all skeined up with the beads, but I worry about white getting dirty. I suppose I could always dye it later. And I have a skein of Handpainted Yarn's merino laceweight, which is now Malabrigo lace, in black. But there are only 800-some yards, and it's a single-ply, which might cause some anxiety at blocking time.

I'm going to go with the grey and maybe just gift it to Karen.

P.S. I can't seem to add pictures right now. Something wonky with Blogger and my "securityToken". Oy. ETA: All better now, apparently.
P.P.S. The advantage to marrying into a Jewish family, however briefly, is the ability to use "oy" in conversation freely. Before Peter went into rehab this time, I had an entire conversation with my FIL's wife that consisted of "Oy, oy vey." A disconcerting and slightly amusing moment for this shiksa.

Wanna Buy a House?

My dear house is now MLS #70596343, if you're interested.

In other news I've started Wisp by Cheryl Niamanth (of Fetching fame for the in-the-know knitterati) with the Laughing Rat mohair. It is going to be sooo pretty, and I've been hankering for something hood-like. I will certainly add the ribbon lacing.


The Sweet Somethings Little Arrowhead Shawl was packed up and sent to the MIL before I realized I hadn't taken it's picture post-blocking. Shoot. Well, it turned out very nicely, and I may make another one. I did an extra repeat of the body pattern, added a couple more rows to the edging, which did increase the points a little (see Pam Allen's comments in IK - she ran out of time doing the edging and wasn't sure her plan would work out). In the Cherry Tree Hill Supersock, it turned into a decent-sized shawl once blocked. Only other thing to add to this pattern is that Pam's suggested bindoff doesn't work so well. I ended up doing the one from the Flower Basket Shawl.


I'm planning to do the Faroese-style shawlette from Sweet Somethings with this gorgeous silk-wool, handspun, hand-dyed yarn Mom bought me last weekend.

7 (8) Random Things

Tanya tagged me with 8 random things. It used to be seven, so let's see what I come up with...

The Rules:
1. Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged write a blog post about their own 8 random things and post these rules.
3. At the end of your blog you need to tag 8 people and post their names.
4. Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.

So here are my 8 random things:

1. I'm allergic to eggplant.

2. I have scoliosis and wore a back brace through high school.

3. My minor in college was Ancient Greek. I wanted to read The Odyssey in the original. I never did in its entirety, but I learned enough to read some of The Iliad, as we went in chronological order, and The Iliad came first. Told you I was a geek.

4. I held Isobel all night when she was born. Just couldn't let her go. I wouldn't get a full night's sleep for the next nine months. But she is worth it.

5. I was on CNN, standing behind Wolf Blitzer, during the 1992 Presidential Debate at Washington University in St. Louis. I wore a bright red miniskirt suit from Benetton that Naomi Campbell modeled on the cover of Seventeen Magazine (or was it Vogue?). I worked for the school paper and somehow wrangled a press pass (I was the copy editor and co-editor of the arts section - not very political). My parents were very excited when I appeared on television, even if I was in the background.

6. I re-read Jane Austen's novels every year or two. I find new things in them every time I read them. Sometimes I read them in the order they were written, other times in order of personal preference (and that changes every time).

7. I took ballet/modern dance from the age of three until I left high school. I also did some acting and studied voice. Ooh, yeah, high school triple threat.

Oh, OK, eight...

8. My favorite movie is The Philadelphia Story. Yes, I do appreciate the irony of liking a movie wherein the privileged female lead remarries her recovered alcoholic husband at the end. Not gonna happen here. But my favorite movie from my childhood is on Comcast's On Demand right now: Xanadu! A musical with greek muses (see #3), neon halos (auras?), petticoats and leg warmers, roller skating, disco and big band, an animated love song sequence, Gene Kelly, Olivia Newton-John, that guy who never did anything else (Michael Beck, apparently), ELO, and named for a Coleridge poem (I was an English major). Love it! I wonder if my LP is in the basement (the advantage of moving back in with the folks). I believe the VHS tape of the movie is in a box in Gloucester. OMG I forgot about the country music segment of the finale! Just when you think it can't get any better! Best. Movie. Ever.

I think I've seen this meme on just about every blog I read, so if you happen to be a reader and haven't been tagged, let me know, and I'll make it official.

E.T.A. Tag, Jenn, you're it! And I'd tag Marissa if she would get herself a knitting blog. Come on, woman!

I'm a cool kid, now!

Yeah, you thought I was cool for learning Magic Loop (pretty much on my own - check me out). But now I'm on Ravelry! Check it, bay-bee. I'm Purly. Woot, to quote Sandy. This thing is huge. I'm not even sure how extensively cool it is yet, but so far I'm totally wowed. Now I just have to get cracking on my Flickr account.

Anyway, much in the queue and stash to get into Ravelry. I'm going to be a busy bee.

In personal news, the house is on the market. I'm really sad about this, but it needs to happen. Wanna buy a house? It's a wonderful house, and we did all the crud work, so the new owner will get to do fun stuff like paint and not worry about burning the house down (wiring was knob and tube, and the roof was badly applied cedar shake).

Laughing Rat Yarn

It's my yarn, Mommy!

Lace Merino in Robin's Egg

Sock in Pacific

Mohair in Robin's Egg

Aren't they beautiful!?! I'm tempted to make these stash pets, but I can't wait to start knitting them up. I think I'm going to use the lace for an Icarus, the mohair for a Sheila Cape, and the sock yarn for, perhaps, socks. I know, what a crazy idea.

Only problem is I'm not keen on hand-winding 1200yds of laceweight, and my swift and ballwinder are in Gloucester. I'm thinking about getting a Nifty Swift, since I don't love the swift I have (it's one of those metal and plastic ones that clamp to the table). Anyone order from Dream Weaver Yarns?

Be sure to check out Laughing Rat's Etsy shop. Her yarns are beautiful, and her customer service was great.


I love the smell of mohair!

FO: Top-Down Raglan Sweater

Top-Down Raglan Sweater (my first)
Yarn: 100purewool Merino Worsted in Sky Blue (can't find this color on their site anymore) - 4.5 skeins
Needles: Bryspun US8 29"
New Skills: spit splicing, Magic Loop (I've joined the cool kids now on with this one!)
Pattern: My own based on EPS

This sweater made for some good, mindless knitting, as it's all Stockinette in the round. I borrowed some of EZ's percentage method, though not all. I did not decrease the sleeves as much as she would have. Well, I did on the first one, did not like it, ripped and made the sleeves straight from the elbow. This made for a modified bell sleeve, which I like. I keep going back and forth on whether to rip back the body and add some shaping at the sides but am not sure I can face that much reknitting in the summer. The other concern is that it's not long enough in the body. It's not the perfect sweater or anything, but I planned for this to be a throw-on-and-go-out-to-get-the-paper kind.

My mom doesn't like the pooling, flashing, and striping, since she liked the yarn in the ball so much. I could have alternated skeins every couple of rows, but that seemed like too much work for this sweater. I like the crazy things variegated yarn does, so I don't mind this, but the yarn was pretty wound up. And is it ever soft! What a pleasure to work with this yarn. I know it will pill, but that's OK.

Oh, it is finished now. The picture was taken when I just had a little more to go on the sleeve. I'll get a "model" shot up some time.

I didn't show this to you, did I?

Ummm, yeah. That's two pounds of merino/cashmere blend. Bulky weight. From School Products. Marissa, some day we're going to make a date to go there in person! But for now, I'll settle for this. I couldn't resist when this showed up on destash. I'm thinking about a coat of some sorts. My only concern is this would not be a mobile project. I don't think lugging a two pound cone o' yarn to the park would work out so well.

The issue du jour is gauge, since the yarn is full of spinning oil. I knit up a swatch on US10s and washed it, but the stockinette still seems pretty open. I'm not sure whether to wash the swatch more ... um ... forcefully. Or go down to US9s. I'm usually prety close on gauge (and they recommend US10 or 11*), though, so I think I'll give the swatch a roughing up first.

And then, of course, I'll have to come up with a plan for what exactly to knit. One idea I had over the weekend was something sort of Jack Sparrow-ish. Yes, I did just watch Pirates of the Carribean over the weekend. I didn't have a whole lot to do except finish the Top-Down Raglan. BTW, that 100purewool yarn bleeds like crazy when washed, but the sweater looks good on the drying rack.

Anyway, some sort of swashbuckling coat with skirts and some cables in place of the braid closures traditionally found on the chest. I'd be all set for Dress Like a Pirate Day. Hmm, I'm not sure.

I am getting some other bulky yarn ideas from browsing through Loop-de-Loop. Teva Durham has some great ideas in there.

*"This one goes to eleven." Hehe. I'm such a geek. Just wait until I do my Eight Things. Thanks, Tanya, I feel I've really joined the knitting blogosphere :)