leftovers

Socks, I shall knit socks. And not even for miss bear, just for myself. 

Ever since I knit the secret-pink-stripes socks for Tim, I have been meaning to knit another pair for myself. It's the same pattern and I might try and make these ones knee socks to use up as much random sock yarn leftovers as possible. There are three rows there of Grignasco Strong Print in yellow at the toe which I swear is the absolute last of that yarn (initially used for illicit socks in 2008). I started off striping them (some op shop Patonyle in blue/grey and some thrift store Trekking XXL) then realised, for goodness' sake, I'm knitting with self-striping yarn (the Trekking) - just knit!

Which I have continued to do, blissfully mindlessly. That's what I like about knitting socks from the toe up - a tube, a heel, then another tube (no gusset decreases) so great expanses of just knit, knit, knit. And two at a time using the magic-loop method, which worked well for me last time.

butterflies

I had butterflies in my tummy before I went back to work. How fitting then, that on my first day I wore a blouse that I made myself from this butterfly print fabric. This butterfly print fabric that comes from a French Connection blouse that I picked up at Buffalo Exchange in the U District completely on a whim because I loved the fabric and thought that I could make something out of it.

Unfortunately, with a couple of muck-ups along the way, I wasn't able to make something out of it alone because I ran out of fabric and then had to stalk ebay to buy another dress and another blouse and a skirt too actually because the previous owner washed the dress with something nigh corrosive and the fabric was bleached out and ... suffice to say, there were no savings made here, fabric-wise.

But the fabric is gorgeous. You can ever so faintly see the self-stripe, it's 100 per cent cotton, great weight and drape, adorable print and no, doesn't suit me at all. I've mostly always worn single colour tops and blouses and t-shirts and there's a reason - I'm just not a printed blouse wearing sort. I did wear it to work, the first day, but only out of pure obstinacy because, yes, I'm like that.

ps: And those pre-first-day-back-at-workbutterflies? It took ten days and a dose of antibiotics to get rid of them. Ugh.

delicious, a smorgasbord

New socks for Tim, with a secret ingredient:

Pink stripes!

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Delicious Knee Socks by Laura Chau.

Size: Oh, can't remember of course. I think I ended up with 72 stitches, realised that they would be too big for me and decided to make them for Tim instead.

Yarn: Six of them from the toe up: Fiber Optic Yarns Foot Notes (80 per cent merino, 20 per cent nylon) in 'Black coffee no.9'; Grignasco Strong Print (75 per cent merino, 25 per cent nylon ); Zitron Trekking (XXL) (75 per cent wool, 25 per cent  Nylon) in 126 and then later in 81; Schoppel-Wolle Crazy Zauberball (75 per cent wool, 25 per cent nylon) in 'U-boot'; and Misti Alpaca Hand Paint Sock Yarn (50 per cent alpaca, 30 per cent merino, 10 per cent nylon, 10 per cent silk) in 'Blues in the Night'.
Needles: 2.25mm.

Start to finish: 10 June to 30 August 2012, so two-and-a-half months. Considering that the last pair of socks took me some two-and-a-half years, I feel as though I am making real progress here!

Stash/recycle content: All of them - the Foot Notes I previously used for the Honey Cowl, the Strong Print for a pair of socks, the Trekking (XXL) were both used in Babette (and came from the thrift store originally), Crazy Zauberball from Kerchief and Babette, and the Hand Paint Sock Yarn I got in a stash swap and used in both Daybreak and Babette.


Comments: I started off knitting these for myself but even though I seemed to be getting gauge they were going to be too big for me. And once I had finished the toe, I couldn't bear to pull it out so I knit them for Tim instead. Inspired by various projects on Ravelry, I really wanted to use up all the odds and ends of sock yarn that I have floating around from various shawl projects mostly. And really, woollen socks get worn under boots mostly so it doesn't really matter if they are multi-coloured. I followed the pattern up until the calf shaping started and knit ribbing after that instead. If I knit another pair, and I think I will, I might try for knee highs for myself. Oh and cast-on was my new favourite, Judy's Magic Cast On.

Oh, and I knit these two at a time, toe up! I'm very proud of myself. They did drag on a bit but there was certainly no second-sock syndrome difficulty. It might make it more fun to change yarns more often, although that would mean more ends to weave in ...

Verdict:  Deliciously happy. They are a great fit for Tim, of course, because I knit them that way! It was also fun to see the self-striping come out on the Trekking (XXL) which I had only previously crocheted with.

return to usual knitting form

That is, in fits and starts. Although it takes me forever to actually complete something, I think that I am, indeed, happier knitting this way - a row here, cast on there, some ribbing here, a seam there.

Currently and variously:

Whippoorwill, which Ravelry so kindly tells me, I first planned about 18 months ago. And now it's finally on the needles, a wispy sort of confection knit from Filatura di Crosa Gioiello, a sort of (hush now) novelty yarn that for some reason just appealed to me.

 I seem to have become a shawl knitter and if you are going to make another one ('another one?', that's my husband's voice interrupting) then really you, that is me, I have to make them a bit varied. I don't have any lighter coloured shawls and as I wouldn't really be one to wear so much white close to my face, this wool/mohair/cotton/nylon/acrylic blend with the little strand of gold through it is a good option. My contrast colour will be the very pretty Madelinetosh Well Water, a lovely light blue, which I will showcase when I get to it. (thank you Di for the present!).

I've also decided that it's time to deal with all that leftover sock yarn. Something practical, like socks. The toe of these is the Fiber Optics Footnotes that I knit the Honey Cowl from, then a couple of rows of Grignasco Strong print, from which I several years ago knit the 'illicit sox'. Then I moved onto some Zitron Trekking XXL (purchased from the thrift store) which I've had in stash for a while, had only used a little in the Babette blanket and am really enjoying watching the self-striping pattern emerge.

I'm using Laura Chau's Delicious Knee socks pattern as originally I had intended these to be for me. But I either measured the circumference of my foot incorrectly or mucked up on gauge or ... whatever, these are now for Tim. When I get to the heel I'll swap over to the dark blue and green Schoppel-Wolle Crazy Zauberball that I used in my Kerchief. Tim is excited about his secret pink stripes (oops, not so secret now).

There's two more - tomorrow.

three cheers!!

Sewing trifecta - hats, tunique francaise and now this Nani Iro number:

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Dress U from nani IRO by Naomi Itou (isbn 4579111834 / 978457911183).
Size: I can't remember ... needless to say, it no longer fits the intended recipient (miss bear) but has found a wonderful home up the street with a three-year old.

Fabric: Linen/rayon blend salvaged from a White Stag bias-cut skirt (which was great because the fabric was already set on the bias), purchased at the thrift store.
Start to finish: Started sometime after we returned from Savannah in October 2010 and completed on 4 June 2012.
Stash/recycle content: 100 per cent - hooray! Button was from stash.

Comments: Again, it was the bindings that did me in. And the little square patch with some gathers underneath it there on the front. I also couldn't get the opening at the back to lie flat - maybe something to do with the dreaded binding? I also simply made my button loop out of the sewing thread rather than the fabric which i thought would get too bulky and couldn't, um, really be bothered with at this late stage anyway. 

Verdict: Very pleased that I actually finished it. The fabric was a great choice for this dress, the colour, the coin spot, the blend.
The front and back are actually cut from two pieces - in the photo of the back you can see the diagonal seam along the bottom corner of the dress. I think that this is design to make the most of the print on the fabric from which the dress is made in the book. It also serves to make the dress asymmetrical but I don't think is necessary if you are not emphasising a feature of the fabric print; that is, I could have cut the back and front in single pieces. I also wonder what might happen to the hang of the dress is that piece were cut on the grain instead.

I have another bias-cut skirt waiting to be up-cycled ....

tunique francaise - finis!

Two years later, I present:

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Tunique froncée from Intemporels pour Bébé: modèles et patrons de 0 à 3 ans by Astrid Le Provost.
Size: Umm, can't quite remember now. I think that I made the largest size (3 years) and lengthened it to use up as much of the fabric as possible.
Start to finish: Hmm, first mentioned on this blog on Thursday, 13 May 2010. I finished it on Monday, 28 May 2012.
Stash/recycle content: All of it - hooray! The paisley was a Goodwill purchase and the brown trim came from a dress that I bought at a yard sale and had previously used for some sewing. The shell button came from stash.

Comments: Not sure if the patterned fabric is really the right thing for dressmaking. I suspect that it is more quilting cotton than dressmaking cotton but hey, it's turned out well. I didn't end up making it as long as I had planned and instead sewed a deep hem on it, thinking that it might need some weight to sit well. And it does. Also, French seams - lovely.

And the amazing delay in getting it done? There must be something about my attention span and the process of sewing. Bindings come towards the end of the project (neck and cuffs in this case, and inserting elastic which I hadn't done before), right when my patience is wearing thin and that is enough to have me set something aside for a while. Turns out that it took two years for my attention to roll back around to this one. I have another girl's dress just waiting on the bindings - the only way that I can date it is that I'm using a linen/rayon blend from a skirt that I bought at a thrift store in Savannah ... (October 2010).

Verdict: Miss bear wore this three days in a row - definite success.

babette's feast [of colour]

I fear that Babette would have a tummy ache.

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Babette Blanket by Kathy Merrick.
Size: Ah, there's a reason this is not called the Barbara Blanket - it's tiny!! Mine measures 84 x 76cm which indicates that I didn't achieve the gauge recommended by the pattern (which gives a finished size of 109 x 101.5 cm). Usually I wouldn't be so concerned with gauge on a project like this, although I am a tad disappointed that it didn't come out larger.

Yarn: Lots of them!

• Patons UK - Crocus  in black; a vintage yarn purchased at Lake City Value Village
• Cleckheaton Merino Bambino 4 ply in 2158, a mid-blue
• Debbie Bliss Rialto 4 ply in 26 (yellow) and 20 (purple), previously used for my kashmir shawl
• Patons Australia Patonyle in a steel blue which I used to finish Tim's dad's socks
• Rowan 4 Ply Soft in a burnt orange
• Ski Yarn Fingering (中細) in 1876, a beige, purchased at Capitol Hill Value Village
• Zwerger Garn Opal 4-fach / 4-ply in a pink/blue/white colourway, unravelled from a baby jacket purchased at an op shop in Benalla
• Zitron Trekking (XXL) in 126 and 81, purchased at Capitol Hill Value Village
• Rowan Pure Wool 4ply in '449 - vintage', '436 - kiss' and '450 - eau de nil', also used in the kashmir shawl
• Rowan Scottish Tweed 4 Ply in '20 - mallard'
• Louet Gems Fingering Weight in sage
• Misti Alpaca Hand Paint Sock Yarn in '01 - blues in the night' which I received in a yarn swap and used for breaking the waves
• Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Solid in 'manzanita' with which I previously attempted the In the Pink shawl
• Heirloom Baby Wool 4 ply in 415 (light blue) and 407 (dark blue)
• Grignasco Strong Print in a blue/pink/yellow colourway, previously used for my illicit socks
• Grignasco Bambi in 416 'camel', previously used for the acorn hat, knit for life cupcake and rhubarb pie liza

So, twenty-one separate yarns.

Hook: 3.25mm for the motifs and 2.75mm for the edging. 
Stash/recycle content: Oh hooray, all of it! Yes, crocheted entirely from stash. Yarn previously purchased for something else, yarn left over, yarn given to me and yarn bought at the thrift store.
Start to finish: 9 March 2011 to 24 May 2012 - actually not so long. It felt like longer ...

I'm so desperate to get a photo of this finished project out there, and I have so much to say about making it that I need some more time to think: to be continued ...

kittyville

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Official Kittyville Hat by Kitty Schmidt, kindly available for free.
Size: There's only one size. The pattern calls for an aran-weight yarn and I knit it in something lighter to size it down for a six-year old birthday gift. 
Yarn: Cascade Yarns 220 Superwash in shade 893 (0.7 skeins) and a tiny bit of Debbie Bliss Angel in shade 15006.
Needles: 4.0mm and a 1.75mm crochet hook. Oh, and a medium size Clover pom-pom maker! 
Start to finish: Quick knit - 9 May to 12 May 2012. 
Recycle/stash content: All of it - the Cascade 220 was given to me by a friend and the Angel came from Goodwill (99c).

Comments: Fun to knit, great result. The pattern is a bit clumsy but I'm guessing that is to make it an easy knit for those who would be attracted to wearing a kitty hat. I'm not personally but it was perfect to knit as a birthday present. I made a few changes - I knit the ears in the round and did paired decreases (k2tog and ssk) at the very edges of each side of the ears. Likewise for the decreases on the ear flaps which would be nicer if knit all in one with the hat instead of attached later by picking up stitches. I also added the fuzzy inside of the ears by crocheting a triangle from the Angel and sewing it on (also helped to reduce any inadvertent resemblance to a devil hat).
And the pom-poms! I haven't made pom-poms since I was a child and then I used a piece of folded cardboard. Which is what I could also have done this time but why let the opportunity to purchase a Clover gadget pass you by?
Verdict: Purrrr!

will knit for childcare

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Improvised - this is just 15 blocks square of basketweave stitch with a garter stitch border.

Yarn: Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in 'pink-a-boo'.
Needles: 4mm.
Start to finish: 15 March to 12 April 2012.
Stash/recycle content: Stash! Actually, yarn purchased at Value Village.

Comments: This is my first commissioned knit! The mother of one of miss bear's schoolmates asked me to recreate her younger daughter's baby blanket. She also offered to pay me but I wasn't really interested in that; instead, she looked after baby b while I did the knitting. Lovely quiet knitting time, even if perhaps not on my first choice of project.Basketweave is a pain to knit, pulling the first and last stitch of each block tight so that it doesn't ended up being too loose all over.

Verdict: Will knit for childcare.

thrift happy

Five or so yards of a light cotton fabric. I can't decide whether this is vintage and there's no information on the selvedge and some damage in places but that doesn't really tell anything. The print looks very 1930s to me. Dress? Blouse? Cupboard stuffer? (Capitol Hill Value Village, $5).

Super bag - solid wooden handles, silk eyelet and cotton lining with inner pockets and leather trim. I love the handle and it's the perfect size for a knitting project. Again a vintage look but actually J. Crew (U-District Goodwill, $10).

will you be my sweet [potato]?

I had a small panic attack in Joann on Sunday afternoon (not uncommon for me in a big-box store like that but anyway) when I saw all of the Valentine's related craft ... stuff.

For my hometown compatriots who are not so familiar with this phenomenon, here in the US preschool and primary school children are, ah, expected to bring a valentine to give to each child in their class. Many purchase commercial cards, covered with licensed characters and many attach crappy compound chocolate to them which I then spend the next few days trying to discreetly dispose of. Valentine's day - love it.

Anyway, for miss bear and I that meant producing 21 cards. One potato + card stock already in the craft cupboard, originally purchased at the thrift store + some kids' paint = hand-made cards. Love it.

2012 manifesto

Now really, before the year gets too old.

- read at least one book each month
- craft mostly from stash (I aspire to 'only from stash' but then, I'm also realistic)
- finish things

My eyes have been way bigger than my stomach for craft supplies here in the US and really, all that stuff sitting around, just becomes a psychological burden. Thankfully, most of it was purchased at the thrift store, which is where a lot of it will find is way back. I really want now to have a project in mind, and then buy supplies if necessary, rather than endlessly purchasing potential and the feeling as though I'm drowning in it.

On a similar note, there are so many unfinished projects floating around here also weighing on my conscience. Speaking of which ...

... perhaps 2012 will be the year that I finally get (a pair of) hand-knit socks?

black walnut clemence

I actually finished this one before reclemence.


The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Clémence by Katya Frankel, available for free through Ravelry.
Size: cast on 90 stitches.
Yarn: Manos del Uruguay Wool Classica in an unknown colourway; 0.8 skeins.
Needles: 4.5mm.
Stash/recycle content: 100 per cent; I purchased this yarn at Value Village in Redmond. It had no ball band.
Start to finish: 24th to 26th of November 2011.
Comments: This was one of those burning-a-hole in my cupboard skeins of yarn, just needing to be used. So I did. I'm not sure if that forced approach to pairing a yarn with its destiny is ever really a good idea. My problem is mostly with the yarn - there are some beautiful shades in it but it's all so patchy that the beauty is lost. Ever heard that about variegated yarns before? Ever heard that here before? Yup.
Verdict: Stay away from variegated yarn, even if it is a super cheap steal of a thrifting find.

micro-tidying

So yeah, what would the world look like if everything got used and re-used and mended until it had totally exhausted its usefulness?

I can begin to see what this would look like for consumption because this is what I am already trying to do myself: it looks like a t-shirt that gets a patch on it, rather than being thrown away; knitwear made from other knitwear; clothes made from other clothes; recycled buttons and zippers; and last but not least, an extra $56.00 to spend on ... um, groceries? And to me, that looks great. How far can it go though? Is there a future where there is more respect for the eco-consciousness of a patched business suit, for instance, than for brand new attire?

And what would it look like for production? If demand for newly manufactured items decreases, what sort of shift will there be in the labour market? I recently attempted to sew myself a t-shirt because I'm not entirely comfortable with the cheap made-in-Sri Lanka ones that I'm currently wearing. I don't know what sort of working conditions they were manufactured under, what sort of emissions the factory made, what carbon cost there was in transporting them to the US; and I care about these things. I also care about the welfare of women in Sri Lanka: one less t-shirt purchased by me may not make a huge difference but if everyone stopped buying them ...

I'm also aware that in order for me to re-use something it has to be manufactured and bought new by someone else in the first place. But what is the tipping point? If everything that already existed were to be re-used to the end of its usefulness, how much would need to be manufactured anew? I have no idea but I find it fascinating to consider.

Anyway, to get around to the point - I made an attempt to tidy up my craft space recently. Tim always gets so frustrated with my efforts at tidying because I micro-tidy, I look at each thing, consider it and deal with it. His version of tidying is to put all the offending mess and paperwork in a drawer (and then wonder why the electricity bill didn't get paid). The other day I got no further in my efforts than some sweater pieces that I cut out goodness knows how long ago (I truly don't remember) that have been sitting there on the table ever since, waiting to be tidied up. So tidy them up I did by sewing the actual sweater.

It's for baby b, recycled from a men's sweater that I bought at the thrift store, 100 per cent wool. I had to cut the front out in two pieces because the sweater had holes in it, so I put on some decorative red stitching; it's never a mistake, it's a design feature. I also cut the pieces to take advantage of the existing hems and cuffs so the only binding that was needed was around the neck. This is a great fit for him right now, a perfect transitional layer, but I can't for the life of me remember what pattern I cut it out from (it's been that long). And one of the great things about upcycling clothing is that you get children's clothes in colours and textures that you just can't find otherwise.

thriftonomics (still rambling)

So back to those snipped-off buttons: why the (perceived) disdain from an older generation that I am doing by choice something that they perhaps once had to do by necessity? It seems that at one point brand new and shiny became cheap and accessible and also preferable.

I had never much thought about economics as anything much beyond "the economy" until I did that Health Economics subjects. And “the economy” has always been something monolithic that I am all too aware that I don't understand well and am therefore hesitant to write much about. But with wikipedia everyone's an expert so here goes: economics is "the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services." I like to think of it in terms of flow, the flow of money in and out, the flow of goods production and disposal. I also like to think of it as a closed system, to recognise the finite nature of our resources.

And I do think that there is a finite number of zippers in our world and in our future; to throw away a worn out garment with a perfectly serviceable zipper still attached, to let it rot and rust, is unconscionable.

I’m sure that I have written before about the amazing mother lode of goods that are available at thrift stores here in the US (well, here in the Seattle area certainly but I’ve visited some pretty huge ones in San Francisco, Chicago, Salt Lake City and Georgia now too). I often wonder when I am there, what if everything here in this store were utilised straight away, if everything reusable were indeed reused, instead of something new being manufactured and purchased?

Please consider the Primigi girls shoes above. One pair was purchased online for $60.00 and has been worn for a couple of weeks. The other pair is the next size up and was purchased at Value Village for $3.99. They are in roughly equivalent condition. That's $56.00 to spend on ... ah, groceries?

must. cast. on.

This book, Contemporary Irish Knits by Carol Feller, arrived in the mail today - hooray! I don't often buy books for patterns, preferring to borrow them from the library or wait until they turn up second hand.

But autumn weather is upon us here in Seattle (gorgeous weather, crisp morning, warm sunny day, cool evening) and miss bear is going to need something warm soon. She has, sadly, outgrown her tomten and I fell in knit-love with Rossbeg as soon as I saw it.

I also had yarn all set to go - nine skeins of Karabella Aurora 8 in colourway 5 'crimson', purchased at Capitol Hill Value Village for about $1 per ball *. Yes, I decided that what I had saved on yarn I could spend on the pattern book.

* That was an amazing thrift day: I also got four skeins of Manos del Uruguay Silk Blend, five skeins of Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Chunky, two skeins of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece and three skeins of Karabella Gossamer. All for one dollar each.

jarrett

Hooray!

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Jarrett by Kim Hargreaves from Rowan's Vintage Style.
Size: Medium with extra length in the arms.
Yarn: Cascade 220 in shade Walnut Heather; almost eight skeins.
Needles: 4mm and 4.5mm.

Stash/recycle content: Just a little bit. I added elbow patches that I cut out of a rather ugly suede skirt purchased at Bellevue Goodwill. I actually bought the skirt to cut out elbow patches to mend a friend's husband's sweater but the suede turned out to be just the right shade for this project too.
Start to finish: 15 March to 13 August 2011 - five months, not bad.

Comments: I put a lot of effort into this knit! I learned and used the long-tail tubular cast-on for hems and cuffs, cast off the neck in similar fashion (not sure where the link is for that one but it involved Kitchener stitch), lovingly knitted the button and buttonhole bands until they fit when gently stretched, single-row buttonholes, a row of slip stitch crochet to reinforce the neckline, and quite a lot of stocking stitch.

I did knit the moss stitch elbow patches and shoulder flaps, I even crocheted around the edges to try and neaten them up but they just didn't work for me. Instead I sewed on very professorial leather elbow patches and dispensed with the shoulder flaps altogether.

The buttons we purchased together at my beloved The Button Shop in Melbourne when we were there in April.

Verdict: Pretty happy. Tim is over the moon that I have finally knit a garment for him (this was my first men's garment!) The fit is good in terms of the size I chose and the sleeve length but still I think the design itself is a bit roomy in the upper sleeves.

Oh and that old-fashioned knit-the-button-band-separately construction is such a pain. And so outdated. Knitting this has made me really curious to take a closer look at the seamless knits that are around. Sometimes it seems as though new designs are just the same old cardigan or sock with a different lace stitch plugged in but seamless construction, top-down set-in sleeves - it's exciting that there is still room for innovation in knitting. Speaking of which, next up for Tim is Brownstone in brown; ok, 'espresso'.

fba

This makes me think of chiropractics for dressmaking - a full bust adjustment. Lo and behold, over at Sew, Mama, Sew! there is a tutorial about altering the Amy Butler Lotus Dress for a full bust (thanks Regan for the tip!)

Work has continued on my Marimekko version of the dress, I have only to complete the binding on one sleeve and work out the hemline. (Initially I thought that I would need to add extra fabric to achieve a good length but that doesn't seem now to be necessary - thankfully).

But I tell you, opening a sewing pattern has turned out to be the equivalent of opening a can of worms, and all because of one issue - fit. It turns out that commercial sewing patterns are designed with a B cup bust in mind, so if you're a size or two larger (unh, or three or four larger) buying the pattern that matches your bust measurement will give you a garment designed for a very large person with a small bust. And that doesn't fit.

I was really lucky this past weekend that a friend's mother was visiting and shared some of her dressmaking and fitting expertise with me on this toile. It's the DKNY Vogue 1573 dress, made up in some scrap fabric that I have had lying around forever. (Actually, I got this fabric for free at a yard sale; the same one where I bought the fabric for my roses quilt. It came in dozens of strips which I sewed together into sheets of fabric; hence my toiles have seams all over the place. Not to mention that sometimes I get confused when sewing and put the seams on the outside (observe under the bust).)

Susanne made some great alteration suggestions which I'm really excited to try out when time permits. I've also borrowed and requested a few books from the library and even found a couple of gems on my own shelves. I pick books up at the thrift store all the time if they are on a topic that interests me and then find them again six months later when I need them.

Getting immersed in all these fit and alteration issues has my head spinning a bit. Do you know that great sensation when you can feel your brain stretching to understand something and integrate that knowledge? It's really exciting and interesting and challenging but a bit of a distraction from the actual sewing. All for the better though if I can just get a dress that blasted well fits.

kashmir

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Nine Lives by Kieran Foley of knit/lab.
Yarn: Recycled red heathered wool and burgundy heathered wool from an Old Navy vest and a J Crew sweater respectively (thrift store purchases), supplemented with Rowan Pure Wool 4ply in Eau de Nil, Vintage and Gerbera.
Needles: 3.75mm.
Start to finish: 6 June to 17 July 2011.
Stash/recycle content: Mostly. I purchased the Pure Wool 4ply in Vintage for this project, the Eau de Nil I had from a while ago and the Gerbera came from another raveller. I also purchased the matte silver beads.
Comments: This was my second attempt at this design, the first colour scheme not being to my liking. I changed around the colour progressions too and knit only two instead of three garter stitch ridges. This was my first project that incorporated beads; it was slow but fun to do. I'm really glad that I found matte silver beads (Fusion Beads in Seattle, wonderful place).

Verdict: Knit/lab patterns are fantastic and if you feel like knitting some wonderful lace, elegant stranded colourwork or a combination of both, I highly recommend a look at the available designs. I'm going to have fun wearing this.

faux prussian stole

I did it!!

The Vital Statistics
Pattern: Faux Russian Stole by Katie Nagorney and Ann Swanson from A Gathering of Lace.
Size: I only did four-and-a-half of the lace panel repeats instead of five and a half. The finished stole measures 56 by 178 centimetres (22" by 70").
Yarn: Recycled!! Cotton/linen/silk blend from an RL Polo top purchased at Value Village in Redmond.
Needles: 4mm Addi Lace.
Start to finish: 22 March 2009 to June 22 2011; 27 months.
Recycle/stash content: 100 per cent, so lovely. This stole cost about $6.00.
Comments: Well, clearly this took me a really long time to knit. It was a slog, two years and three months. The lace repeat for this design is 81 stitches wide and 96 rows deep which means that you have to keep looking at the chart all the time, and counting all the time. There are both k2tog and ssk decreases, depending on what direction the eyelets are running, and I often had to move my markers around in order to make the decreases which initially drove me nuts.

I did one less of the central lace repeats and am very happy with the length that the stole blocked out to. Had I done that one more it would have been too long.

Verdict: Stunning! I'm very happy with this and delighted that it has turned out so well. Two years ago when I blithely cast on for it, I don't think that I had such a good understanding of yarn/pattern compatibility but this has worked out really well.