tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69044672024-03-07T16:35:21.748-05:00k8knitsa running account of my fibery exploits from the northern outpost of woolarina.comKatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.comBlogger191125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-2896867958390688902012-01-29T13:32:00.003-05:002012-01-29T13:32:41.254-05:00moving backI have too many sites to update, and it's too complicated for me. So, all of my knitting exploits from now on will be found on my original blog:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://kismet09.livejournal.com/tag/fiber_arts">http://kismet09.livejournal.com/tag/fiber_arts</a>
<br />
<br />
If you use that link, you'll only get the fibery content.<br />
<br />
And, of course, everything also ends up on ravelry: <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/k8knits">http://www.ravelry.com/projects/k8knits</a><br />
<br />
Thanks for reading!Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-57810422742980131332011-12-20T18:51:00.000-05:002011-12-21T23:06:00.042-05:00winter break project managementi have two weeks away from work, more or less. 34 hours of that time will be spent in the car, driving maine to chicago, round trip. i am driving-averse, so probably most if not all of that time will be spent in the passenger seat. that, plus lounging about at my parents' place for a week, plus another week at a scrabble tournament, means lots of knitting time. one of the luxuries of driving is that my luggage is not limited by one carry-on - i can bring all the yarn i want. it has been a busy knitting winter for me, and i'm still itching to do more. here's what i'm considering.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table style="width: 400px;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5CQ6z4iNAkqFPqcdxhrljDVB7meGXZMEuzrhSdmN5HcmjpVs_AO3AVHgzpuK0CTNj0_yTbrFqN7Xkz3SEmD-pURGfPwOz8ddXlFRaTfRg776dbgxjLkiXsIkCoO-ZAZL8_VAD/s1600/201111-burberrycowl.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5CQ6z4iNAkqFPqcdxhrljDVB7meGXZMEuzrhSdmN5HcmjpVs_AO3AVHgzpuK0CTNj0_yTbrFqN7Xkz3SEmD-pURGfPwOz8ddXlFRaTfRg776dbgxjLkiXsIkCoO-ZAZL8_VAD/s200/201111-burberrycowl.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
burberry cowl
</td><td style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGK5mjbR-tC66xnwlsgxhj_FkhZ0xKIF4w3VI7OywoGM-WuyQVDzgRQ12KJl0Y84igpKoXQKxgxdYrtB4i5ohdED0X2_4ptewyWdj2oRD3-1riBxzYjnkoOCprEL05FHVhtOq3/s1600/201112-slipstitchcowl.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGK5mjbR-tC66xnwlsgxhj_FkhZ0xKIF4w3VI7OywoGM-WuyQVDzgRQ12KJl0Y84igpKoXQKxgxdYrtB4i5ohdED0X2_4ptewyWdj2oRD3-1riBxzYjnkoOCprEL05FHVhtOq3/s200/201112-slipstitchcowl.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
slip cowl</td>
<td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicsQ8sZKpCFI7CFx-Luq8-QUKdRO45Lv1bt7iuYrpEptfVWwmwrTIGaV84VuXA_WW9nQOoua90q7OA6S-inakAyUjOiRCu9aCQK2OthZ3vpDaA80NXtMRGoB8ztHTIV-C7likU/s1600/rios_dashing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicsQ8sZKpCFI7CFx-Luq8-QUKdRO45Lv1bt7iuYrpEptfVWwmwrTIGaV84VuXA_WW9nQOoua90q7OA6S-inakAyUjOiRCu9aCQK2OthZ3vpDaA80NXtMRGoB8ztHTIV-C7likU/s200/rios_dashing.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
dashing</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul>
<li>burberry inspired cowl (on the left) - i did one of these and love the way it sits. i think the high variegation of rios will look great in this cowl, and i'll have something to match my dashing mitts (on the right). <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/burberry-inspired-cowl-neck-scarf" target="_blank">rav project link</a>. or is this the tuesday night cowl? now i can't remember. they seem pretty similar to each other.</li>
<li>a plain garter stitch cowl - i have <a href="http://www.knittinganyway.com/freethings/russianjoin.htm" target="_blank">russian joined</a> a bunch of odds and ends of purples and greens together, including some berocco jasper, cascade, karabella aurora 8, random stuff i dyed when trying out some potential yarn bases, and who knows what else. i'm hoping for something along the lines of <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/mystringtheory/scrap-happy-scarf---for-knitters" target="_blank">this scrap-happy scarf</a> (ravelry link), minus the fringe.</li>
<li>slip stitch cowl (in the middle) - another one that i just did and love, and i still have more random scraps left that could easily be incorporated into another one of these. <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/k8knits/slip-stitch-stash-hat" target="_blank">my rav project page</a>. </li>
</ul>
i guess everything i have planned at this time is for me... that isn't really intentional. i think i've made something for everyone i know in the past two months who i think might appreciate it! <br />
<ul>
</ul>Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-61287461089919305582011-12-19T22:12:00.000-05:002011-12-19T22:12:06.696-05:00deconstruction<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiza-1xqGdU0JutfxZkkereytdr0QONeLXjPCHjv04yRaXHy5nKlRe25VpaRZwBQn3t3qoHd0mnuhmztN9N1_GcgcS9Xz7Y_C88lWltkKJmau0197hzfLGhxZIYjibf95l8LQaO/s1600/stockings.jpg.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiza-1xqGdU0JutfxZkkereytdr0QONeLXjPCHjv04yRaXHy5nKlRe25VpaRZwBQn3t3qoHd0mnuhmztN9N1_GcgcS9Xz7Y_C88lWltkKJmau0197hzfLGhxZIYjibf95l8LQaO/s320/stockings.jpg.jpeg" width="238" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzJ1XxEYF0hLqgQD7FUyPxNc69juFsBxI1Bf4XjGU2npzOOfyFBwFxytuWAAj0XP6zGf6eH0uuxmU7JOMBa71F729rFahspHiCpNAMQZwfCZRXZy1DW5bLpMQ6Se_MKViDyMC/s1600/stocking2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzJ1XxEYF0hLqgQD7FUyPxNc69juFsBxI1Bf4XjGU2npzOOfyFBwFxytuWAAj0XP6zGf6eH0uuxmU7JOMBa71F729rFahspHiCpNAMQZwfCZRXZy1DW5bLpMQ6Se_MKViDyMC/s320/stocking2.jpeg" width="236" /></a></div>
i just realized that i could link this blog to my google+ account - maybe it'll see more action now that it's linked up. i've knitted a million things for xmas, but i can't post any of them until after people get them (although most of them are up on ravelry... more public details perhaps once they've been gifted and unwrapped). the last thing on the list is to create two stockings kind of like these for my coworker. the complication is that these take on some natural wave due, i think, to a thick and thin yarn rather than anything fancy like intarsia. i have to figure out how to either make my pattern replicate it with the uniformly spun yarn that i have, or come up with something that will complement these but be slightly different. i really don't want to just do straight stripes. any ideas would be welcome here.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-68402517773884049442010-05-31T13:04:00.004-05:002010-05-31T13:12:17.422-05:00Squam Art Fair<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.squamartworkshops.com/"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjscUGvuniPtBL31fiGar_n2lXlT6DzltyRWAyY0-xQvJri5MagXVRqKI5f9CePeYl5w9c5UL-rG-oR8LVl4ZPtcTEn108RNpIIS9oO2rPYaWb95QEzeIntPDSue1NrtCqU2jGL/s320/Squam+ArtFair_BUTTON.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477498189235530418" border="0" /></a><br />The Squam Art Workshops bring fiber artists together with amazing teachers to learn new techniques and share ideas. In addition to classes, there will be a fair with 37 vendors, including woolarina! Come visit me - admission is free, as is beer!<br /><br />I'll have lots of sock yarn, including the woolarina lux sport, with its cashmere-y goodness.<br /><br />Saturday June 5, 7:30-10pm, about 1.5 hours from Portsmouth. Click on the image to learn more!Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-28372950394206072892010-01-23T09:04:00.002-05:002010-01-23T09:14:32.940-05:00back to the dyepot<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAntwzjgjY7Su8s4hDqauDdbkwd4LlRuPKyqTUvOXNRzLRPODJW3hxgUgf64vKYTGGnW62fddDSHV3Nbz-VFM5lCA25-Tn0MYGyIOy1X11yTtq3gvomfBWDaq3s1bHfptnx48/s1600-h/0110-bamboowool.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 242px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAntwzjgjY7Su8s4hDqauDdbkwd4LlRuPKyqTUvOXNRzLRPODJW3hxgUgf64vKYTGGnW62fddDSHV3Nbz-VFM5lCA25-Tn0MYGyIOy1X11yTtq3gvomfBWDaq3s1bHfptnx48/s320/0110-bamboowool.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429936150103308354" border="0" /></a>I'm trying to get some yarns done for <a href="http://homespunyarnparty.blogspot.com/">Homespun Yarn Party </a>- someday, I'll get ambitious and create a similar event up here on the Seacoast. <br /><br />I think it's time to really start recording how I make some of these colors. It'd be nice to be able to replicate some of my efforts, sometimes. Right now, I have a pretty good instinct for how much water to how much dye, and which colors to blend to make new ones that go together, but sometimes I'm sad when the yarns go off to sale knowing I'll never be able to make ones I like again.<br /><br />These guys are springy colors, since I'm starting to yearn for spring. The bottom picture is my friend Emily's first attempt at dyeing - I love the eggplanty colors together and some of the blends that her different colors made when they ran into each other.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqvTiaZBParlWPeUQrjX9GlqJUEAOzhBWgnKDLCM1mZa5dEXWTbnrqqhq-pBkcx8Wlth7GztAjk9QCEkJVm300Pc3ZVbCkrme-x9PmLV3NmLEHBTexIOzqz1PryvWzCd69gLr1/s1600-h/0110-emilyyarn.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqvTiaZBParlWPeUQrjX9GlqJUEAOzhBWgnKDLCM1mZa5dEXWTbnrqqhq-pBkcx8Wlth7GztAjk9QCEkJVm300Pc3ZVbCkrme-x9PmLV3NmLEHBTexIOzqz1PryvWzCd69gLr1/s320/0110-emilyyarn.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429936144607121346" border="0" /></a>Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-11289143969998774892010-01-17T13:42:00.003-05:002010-01-17T13:50:09.885-05:00chevron cowl<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb27Juz7K8hBNsyTUtwILaUQbV4ZsaphuqoT3UGjBfnxyWAknY-HB3BSFpTjD9wbWeurQfy7qs8sU1RB98dxmngW1Z9LTh7Pcbe9UNDg9_8llwMwyfBLNY14qWr9f_sZtCBLJ3/s1600-h/0110-silkycowl.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 233px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb27Juz7K8hBNsyTUtwILaUQbV4ZsaphuqoT3UGjBfnxyWAknY-HB3BSFpTjD9wbWeurQfy7qs8sU1RB98dxmngW1Z9LTh7Pcbe9UNDg9_8llwMwyfBLNY14qWr9f_sZtCBLJ3/s320/0110-silkycowl.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427781143958555602" border="0" /></a>For those of you who haven't met her, this is Cassie. She often gets stuck modeling my knitting projects. She's a nine year old amalgam of dog breeds. In this picture, she's wearing my newest cowl project. It's based loosely on the chevron scarf in Last Minute Knitted Gifts - I love the idea of alternating a strongly variegated yarn with a solid or almost-solid yarn. I also dislike purling, so working the pattern in the round was pleasing.<br /><br />Here's how I did it - I'm not a very professional pattern writer, so comment away if you want to try this at home and have no idea what I'm trying to say.<br /><br />Chevron Cowl<br /><br />needles: 16" circ in 3s and 5s<br />yarns: CC - Noro Silk Garden (the neutral one) and MC - Mini Mochi (I have no idea what colorway this is). one skein each (with leftovers of both)<br />one stitch marker<br /><br /><p>I didn't work a gauge, but the 5 row repeat was about 3/4β for me on the larger needles.<br /></p><p>total length: 10β. circumference ~20β.</p> <p>CO 144 sts (or another multiple of 18) in CC with larger needles (or even larger, if you cast on tightly like I do), place marker, join w/o twisting.<br />knit 1 row and purl 1 row in CC (to create a garter ridge, to try to keep the thing from curling up).<br />join MC, knit 1 row, purl 1 row, knit 1 row.<br />next row, begin chevron pattern below.<br />continue to a couple inches short of desired length (i did 15 repeats of the 5 row pattern).<br />change to smaller needles (i did this to change the gauge enough to make the cowl stay up around my nose when itβs cold).<br />work pattern twice (10 rows)<br />work the pattern row (row 1) of the chevron, then purl 1 row CC (this will create a row of garter stitch instead of stockinette). work 1 garter ridge of MC (k 1 row, p 1 row), another of CC, and bind off w/larger needles.</p> <p>chevron pattern:<br />row 1: w/CC, k2tog 3 times *kfb 6 times, k2tog six times* repeat to six st rem, k2tog 3 times.<br />row 2: w/CC, knit<br />rows 3-5: w/MC, knit<br /></p><p>[i knitted three rows of mini mochi because the yarn is a little thinner than the noro and i didn't want the color to get lost]<br /></p>Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-66626365078412974462010-01-12T15:50:00.002-05:002010-01-12T15:53:05.093-05:00resolveMy Knitting Year Resolutions:<br /><br />1. to post something here at least once a month. even if it means no pictures and mundane text. just get something here so that i don't forget that it exists.<br /><br />2. be more active in woolarina. dye more. knit more. bust through the stash with some handknits out of all the handspun that i'm accumulating. this should be even more fun now that i have my own drum carder*.<br /><br />3. get to at least one fiber gathering, whether it's spa or nh sheep & wool or rhinebeck or something. it'd be nice to just be immersed in fiberness for a weekend to stay in touch.<br /><br />*the husband bought me a louet carder for xmas. gold star for husband! i'm still trying to figure out how to use it well (ie so that it makes decent batts, of a good thickness, without being scared that i'll break the crank mechanism).Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-61134691438171449932009-12-01T22:29:00.003-05:002009-12-01T22:32:56.105-05:00oops, i missed novemberbut only by one day, so i'm not doing that badly.<br /><br />i finished a project, but i can't show you, because it's a christmas gift.<br /><br />i bought some yarn, but i can't tell you about it, because it's a christmas gift.<br /><br />so ummm... here's some corned beef hash with roasted beets and sweet potatoes to tide you over:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf7OWuvFJ-4EhI8pvUmR5i61O0WMId9rjBnKZ1UF_MCSQjC4V7IvvuBfRnaBMQdncnbwtny9RwYmrrMMTYo6YC0NHBWYRtGj9N9BqvLuYGrng8HA9DD_YHsX_xFo8cZ1E6FCaM/s1600-h/1109+084.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 168px; height: 126px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf7OWuvFJ-4EhI8pvUmR5i61O0WMId9rjBnKZ1UF_MCSQjC4V7IvvuBfRnaBMQdncnbwtny9RwYmrrMMTYo6YC0NHBWYRtGj9N9BqvLuYGrng8HA9DD_YHsX_xFo8cZ1E6FCaM/s320/1109+084.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410476452709610610" border="0" /></a> used the cook's illustrated best recipe as a jumping off point. so good.Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-19357476331498339912009-10-10T09:28:00.003-05:002009-10-10T09:30:05.791-05:00once a monthi will try to vow to write at least once a month. Crafty Bastards has me back on the fiberwagon, so here i am.<br /><br />business was good at the fair - lots of yarn found hopefully happy homes. a few newer knitters were asking how much sock yarn it'd take to make a scarf... more power to folks who knit scarves from sock yarn, but i'm thinking it might be time to test drive some worsted weights and see if we can add one to the inventory.<br /><br />on my needles right now are lots of hats, in prep for a winter craft fair and a couple of new babies. my camera is still packed from this weekend, so no pics today, but hopefully soon!Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-48498381467305253672009-09-11T15:04:00.002-05:002009-09-11T15:11:37.764-05:00Crafty Prep<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFQ5eMsICEPAsoMWfjlgE1Lgxw3OL-Iev1KphS63-4FVThyPGXT3Wj2x4qTjMjgTZoLY_uYF6UGwK0V1-I0OOyN__RGq2T5WmzhrZBdLyOmbiurip2y06niRVLwtqTzaJ6rhe5/s1600-h/0909-wristers.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 234px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFQ5eMsICEPAsoMWfjlgE1Lgxw3OL-Iev1KphS63-4FVThyPGXT3Wj2x4qTjMjgTZoLY_uYF6UGwK0V1-I0OOyN__RGq2T5WmzhrZBdLyOmbiurip2y06niRVLwtqTzaJ6rhe5/s320/0909-wristers.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380305027920772530" border="0" /></a><br />First of all, <a href="http://www.woolarina.com/blog.html">the main woman behind Woolarina is now plus one baby boy</a>! congratulations, Paula!<br /><br />baby Oliver means that I need to pick up the pace in carrying the weight of the wool, at least when it comes to Crafty Bastards, a fair that we wouldn't miss. I'll be flying down for the weekend, yarns in tow. I'm still in the process of dyeing, so if anyone has colorway recommendations, send them this way!<br /><br />I've had the week off of work recovering from pesky medical issues, so I've been entertaining myself by knitting on very small needles. I have a whole box of odds and ends from previous dye jobs, so I started making wrist warmers. None of them match, but they do show off the yarns that I've made, and they've been keeping me company while watching season three of Dexter and some Red Sox games.Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-6503424605525103742009-05-07T09:12:00.001-05:002009-05-07T09:14:33.535-05:00sunny daysOkay, it's been years since I managed to knit a sweater of any kind. I know myself well enough to know that sleeves and seams are not likely to happen, but I have an 8-hour car ride to and from NYC this weekend, so I figure I should have something to work on. Plus, I sit in front of the tv for baseball games a lot these days, so more mindless projects will come in handy.<br /><br />Thus, I've decided that <a href="http://knitty.com/ISSUEspring05/PATTsoleil.html">Soleil </a>is a good next project to put on the needles. I have a full bag of <a href="http://www.classiceliteyarns.com/product_page_detail.php?category_id=1&item_id=21">Classic Elite Premiere</a> that's been in my closet for years that should be perfect. Wish me luck!Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-41843761363811906782009-04-28T19:31:00.001-05:002009-04-28T19:31:23.505-05:00halfpi<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3484873082/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3411/3484873082_4c573b0ea3_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3484873082/">halfpi</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>Paula gifted this yarn to me for xmas, and i've been fretting about how to do it justice. it's a gorgeous handpaint from fleece artist called Suri Blue, a blend of Suri Alpaca and Blue Face Leicester, in the Midnight colorway. I finally decided on a half-pi shawl, since I had such good luck with the full pi shawl that I gifted away. Yet another mindless knit, and that's all I seem to like these days.<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-27229245984060568742009-04-28T19:26:00.001-05:002009-04-28T19:26:43.137-05:00soxscarf<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3484057829/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3330/3484057829_a7ca3df3e7_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3484057829/">soxscarf</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>i'm still here. i'm barely knitting. it was too cold to dye in the basement in the winter in maine. but, i do have a traveling scarf that made it home that i figured i should show off. it's about 8" wide, and fairly short, and i like it a lot. i was worried about what a bunch of different reds might look like together, but it turns out that they behave just fine. i have two more projects to show off, but i'm too lazy to code things, so i'm going to keep using this flickr blog engine to post them, and just make them two new posts instead of combining everything.<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-39617055192230244502008-12-28T18:59:00.001-05:002008-12-28T18:59:29.763-05:00Pi Shawl<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3144985001/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3235/3144985001_bb33fccef4_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3144985001/">1208-shawl3</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>this is my favorite knit of the year. It's an Elizabeth Zimmerman Pi Shawl, with yok2tog rows every six rows, knit out of a bunch of scraps that I have from various dye projects. I love the way it looks after being blocked - it has been awhile since I've done a lace project, and I forgot about the magic that comes with blocking. It's hard to tell with this lighting, but it's mostly dark purples, blues, etc., but it has all the colors of the rainbow in it. It took a very long time, and measures about 6' in diameter. It ended up being a Christmas present for my mother. I also just finished a merino/silk Clapotis that I meant to keep for myself, but my grandmother liked it, so it went to her as a gift. That just means I get to treat myself to more of that yarn and dye it up. I'm currently in California and stopped by a yarn shop with a wall full of Schaefer yarns, and realized that I can pretty much replicate any of their colorways, if I really put my mind to it. That's pretty cool.<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-72866195098483565552008-12-19T09:27:00.003-05:002008-12-19T09:42:17.870-05:00winter break plansSo, I have 16 days of vacation! Some of them will be taken up by traveling, but a fair amount of the traveling also allows for knitting. I spent a good hour staring at my boxes of yarn and shelves of patterns. Here's what I think I'll try to work on:<br /><br /><a href="http://mimoknits.typepad.com/knitting/2007/09/japanese-vines.html">Japanese Vines</a> in a Louet that I dyed awhile ago and haven't found a use for.<br /><a href="http://brooklyntweed.blogspot.com/2008/07/turn-square-pattern-now-available.html">Turn a Square Hat</a> - Cascade and Berocco Jasper<br />a pair of wristers for the sister in law - maybe swirling gauntlets (<a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/swirling-gauntlets">rav link</a>)?<br />A red-friendly scarf for a Red Sox Traveling Scarf project...<br /><br />Basically, I'm just shoving a bunch of yarn, all my double points and size 5-8 circs in my bag. Luckily, there's a yarn store nearby when I'm home in case I need extra supplies, plus the sister has knitting stuff I can steal from.Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-40384341364471349142008-12-12T19:10:00.003-05:002008-12-12T19:16:36.473-05:00Cash Island Wristers<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIf64-OX8Dl8QwW57-GOV6uf8xLKaHV3-1AxLpsFCq8pWziUV7tJs4WitHzGJVGGClIuOJYj-K9AmLl1ZyFlmBBUcquUCh2DSW-_WcwfKbLsGCbFDCpkjN5t-Y0pjWHKjxVQck/s1600-h/1208+072.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIf64-OX8Dl8QwW57-GOV6uf8xLKaHV3-1AxLpsFCq8pWziUV7tJs4WitHzGJVGGClIuOJYj-K9AmLl1ZyFlmBBUcquUCh2DSW-_WcwfKbLsGCbFDCpkjN5t-Y0pjWHKjxVQck/s200/1208+072.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5279061669349014274" border="0" /></a><br />These were a fabulously rewarding quick knit. First off, I love this new Noro, because it's super soft. I wish the other Noros were equally soft, because the colors make me so happy. I knit the first wrister of this pair on a weekend visit to friends - most of it was knit at a bowling alley on a Sunday morning (doesn't every bowl on Sunday mornings?) The second was knit today while waiting for the power to come back on in Maine - I started it at a coffeeshop, and finished it bundled up in bed, trying to maximize the last few minutes of daylight. Happily, the power kicked back on soon after.<br /><br />The mitts are just taken from the Anne Budd 'handy book of patterns' - my go-to when I want to knit thumb gussets without having to calculate anything. I started them on sixes and went down to fives to make the finger area nice and snug (a few more details on ravelry <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/k8knits/basic-mitten-pattern">here</a>). They took almost exactly a skein, and are fraternal twins, thanks to Noro's long color stripes - there were no real color repeats in the skein. I still have ends to weave in, but I tucked them all in and took a picture -- this is one of the few projects I can share, since so many of them are xmas gifts that have to remain under wraps for a couple more weeks.Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-63062236620749520892008-11-30T14:27:00.004-05:002008-11-30T14:31:20.845-05:00ready for next weekend<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3071869528/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 131px; height: 68px;" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3296/3071869528_2576b0047d.jpg?v=0" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />My yarns are labelled and inventoried, including the merino/sea cell pictured here. All the rest are also previewed in my <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/kismet09">flickr photostream</a>. Come visit - Sunday at the Castle in Boston!<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/boston.html"><img style="width: 521px; height: 43px;" src="http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/images/BB_header.gif" /></a>Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-57941924597357854932008-11-17T22:04:00.001-05:002008-11-17T22:04:08.050-05:00back to the dye bench<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3039280127/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3218/3039280127_d076bcc0da_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3039280127/">IMG_0897</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>It's good to be dyeing again. All of this will be for sale at Bazaar Bizarre. I'm about 20 skeins into my dyeing, with about 30 to go. I missed it a lot and am glad to be back to the dyepot. The new setup is also making it so much easier to get stuff done. Yay!<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-66683394970097499322008-11-09T22:27:00.001-05:002008-11-09T22:27:33.584-05:00workspace!<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3018213022/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3041/3018213022_c3e8aa2683_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/3018213022/">1108-bench2</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>Among other things, since i last updated, I:<br />-- sold a house, bought a house, moved to Maine<br />-- started a new job at the U of NH<br />-- broke the top 100 in competitive Scrabble<br />-- was accepted to Bazaar Bizarre<br /><br />That last one has finally motivated me to get my dyeing back in action. We moved into the new house about 2 months ago now, and today, I finally had things more or less in order to get to work. We bought a kit to build a work bench from Home Depot, and refitted it with longer legs, which means I can do all of my dyeing without bending over and straining my back. I worked for about 2 hours today, with no soreness. This is almost a miracle. <br /><br />I threw out all of my old dye storage containers at the old house, but found some perfect tupperware-esque containers in town. I now have six stock solutions to dilute and combine to my heart's content. I'm trying to be a little more scientific so that I might be able to actually recreate colors once in awhile, but I admit that my last two skeins of the evening involved dumping small remnants of all the other colors into each other to finish things up.<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-471931947197555102008-08-16T10:18:00.001-05:002008-08-16T10:18:17.142-05:00Pi Progress<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/2767449773/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3250/2767449773_a55e759736_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/2767449773/">piprogress</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>This shawl is great for baseball and Olympics watching - I barely have to look down. With all the tiny remnants of yarn I'm using, though, I do have to join in yarns every few rows. I'm knitting the old and new yarn together for 4-5 stitches, and then knitting the rest of the round. When I come back to the spot with the join, I pick up one of the stray ends and knit it together with the active strand for another few. Hopefully, this will save me from weaving in too many ends by hand. the colors look kind of weird next to each other here, but I think it'll all blend okay by the time it's completely done.<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-43854050534619290252008-08-10T11:52:00.003-05:002008-08-10T21:39:43.137-05:00a shawl to be<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/2749511659/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3092/2749511659_b5bbf2d1e2_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 0);" /></a><br /><span style="margin-top: 0px;font-size:0;" ><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/2749511659/">0808-remnants</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>I found my tupperware of remnants! These are little bits of almost all of the fingering to sport weight yarns that I've dyed for woolarina. They will become a pi shawl. I started yesterday, and it took me about 45 minutes to finally give up trying to start it in the round on dpns. Instead, I knitted the first couple rounds, including the first increase round, on two needles, then moved to the double points. I can fuss with it to make it look like it was joined from the beginning later. This should be a good, mindless knitting project to keep me occupied during our move. Due to timing of buying and selling, we'll be in a rental for a month, with no cable or wireless. I'm going to guess that I'll get a lot of knitting done, or possibly go crazy.Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-11253973929243600352008-08-03T20:17:00.001-05:002008-08-03T20:17:07.445-05:00even further north<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/2729635651/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3162/2729635651_7a6b066f14_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kismet09/2729635651/">BadgerIsland</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kismet09/">kismet09</a></span></div>As it turns out, we'll be moving about a mile north of New Hampshire, to Kittery, Maine, in less than a month! This is the view from a restaurant on Badger Island, between Portsmouth and Kittery, where we ate freshly caught seafood on one of our house hunting excursions.<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-53222289062137937122008-06-01T10:45:00.001-05:002008-06-01T10:45:11.259-05:00knitgoods<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/32121040@N00/2541144771/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3013/2541144771_665093e0bd_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/32121040@N00/2541144771/">knitgoods</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/32121040@N00/">kismet09</a></span></div>So, we're moving again -- Woolarina North is heading further north, this time to New Hampshire! Since it's summer, and since we're moving, all of the scarves, hats and mittens have been packed away in preparation. I'm in the process of packing my stash as well, and am glad to report that it hasn't grown in commercial yarn since my move from MD to MA three years ago - I have one new Tupperware full, but it's all stuff that I've spun or knit.<br clear="all" />Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-89834883112706465802008-04-19T09:45:00.001-05:002008-08-10T21:40:03.426-05:00Spring means...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaMgAT158ouVv-FTvYl_2uRcm1yWKbNcrvStnWBQAn58UaoEBn05yXcQyxONqEcUESVhQmq2A-6yLH_zSlSLwhyRegYzj1-MMNBX-ynjM9byVeuRn9cUoQQRafnptjxSaIKkbB/s1600-h/0408+023.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; clear: both; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaMgAT158ouVv-FTvYl_2uRcm1yWKbNcrvStnWBQAn58UaoEBn05yXcQyxONqEcUESVhQmq2A-6yLH_zSlSLwhyRegYzj1-MMNBX-ynjM9byVeuRn9cUoQQRafnptjxSaIKkbB/s320/0408+023.jpg" border="0" /></a> No leaves on the trees yet, but nice weather, sun and a breeze - perfect conditions for hanging newly-finished handspun yarns out to dry. All of these guys - plus lots of Woolarina Handpaints - will be for sale at the <a href="http://cloverhillyarn.blogspot.com/">Cloverhill Yarn Shop</a> booth at Maryland Sheep & Wool next month.<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6904467.post-9957185930888348292008-03-09T13:54:00.001-05:002008-03-09T13:56:29.308-05:00dye day - march 08<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJF1sY1aKmG1vfDD6yYr8zdRBuFufe1SgYvr-kN9f1Zl0mFrmNMPoANA63Oqs7DG2KvqXrW-S7VFhDirp5kNuTYu4aTM_324g5ysJEAs1b0sAtPNvqd3KsYHke2JVGPH7MouP/s1600-h/0208-tx1.jpg"><img style="width: 493px; height: 60px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJF1sY1aKmG1vfDD6yYr8zdRBuFufe1SgYvr-kN9f1Zl0mFrmNMPoANA63Oqs7DG2KvqXrW-S7VFhDirp5kNuTYu4aTM_324g5ysJEAs1b0sAtPNvqd3KsYHke2JVGPH7MouP/s320/0208-tx1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_" border="0" /></a> </div>This is the first bunch of dyeing I've done in the new year, and I took advantage of hauling out the supplies by getting a dozen skeins and three bunches of roving dyed up. I tried to do some spring-friendly colors, but as always, things tended toward the deeper, darker colors most of the time. Included in this batch of dyeing was about 700 yards of merino/silk, destined to become my next Clapotis.<div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Katehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03763627388025663455noreply@blogger.com0