15 January 2013 - 09:32
I love going through my friend activity on Ravelry to see what they’re all making. I have a really fantastic core of knitters and crocheters in my friends list… just check out some of this stuff they’ve made recently!
[Click on the images to go to the Ravelry project page!]
stanzi’s cowboy cowl
jadeblade’s arm warmers
jadeblade’s felted bunny slippers
micicuta’s sideways shawl
beckyrocks’ honors geometry cowl
I need more time to knit! Maybe I should just schedule it into my weekly routine… hmm, that’s a good idea!
1 October 2012 - 08:19
On Sunday, September 30th, Hill Country Weavers hosted a lovely trunk show and slideshow with the talented Stephen West! His patterns took off on Ravelry after publishing the Boneyard Shawl, and he established himself as a knitwear designer with the immensely popular Clockwork shawl. He now has three pattern collections, a variety of collaborations, and lots of great new stuff in the works!
I managed to snap some pictures of his samples (and ours!) and talk while at the shop today:
Stephen West at HCW!
read more
23 April 2012 - 13:31
It was only a matter of time before Doctor Who found its way onto Knitty.com, one of the most popular knitting pattern magazines on the Internet. This summer’s Knitty Surprise features “Bigger on the Inside,” a cleverly designed shawl with modern shaping and a slew of adorable lace TARDISes.
I love the ‘Time Vortex’ lace, and the angular ribbing compliments the TARDISes perfectly! And hey, maybe this will get more knitters watching Doctor Who!
Queue it up here:
And get it here!
ek
11 February 2012 - 13:57
There are many reasons I love this pattern:
- it’s a cowl and a shawl in one
- the name is a pop culture reference
- there is a business in Austin called Zuzu’s Petals
- it’s lacey but not super femme
- it’s made by one of my favorite Rav people, Carina Spencer (who I met due to my old Ravelry name being a title of a song her husband wrote while in one of my all-time favorite bands, The Casket Lottery
)
I’ve made two so far, both were yarn splurges. The first is with Alisha Goes Around Pulchritude of Peacocks DK in “Helios”.
in Pulchritude of Peacocks
Action Shot
The second is in Lang Yarns Sol Dégradé, a slow-change dyed cotton.
in Sol Dégradé
I loved working with both yarns, though I have to say that the Sol Dégradé bled like CRAZY when I soaked it. The water was solid blue after sitting for 20 minutes in Eucalan. I’ve already work the Alisha Goes Around cowl; put it on with a cropped black blazer and wore it while I taught on Monday. Loved it. I made the cotton one so I had a cooler cowl to wear in Austin’s perpetual anti-wool weather.
I definitely recommend following her bind-off instructions.
20 October 2009 - 19:43
I live in a house with a ridiculously huge backyard. The yard is fenced in, and even has a separate, fenced-off area that I’m pretty sure was used to keep animals of some kind. Well, ever since I’ve moved in those of us in the house have talked about planting a garden out back … and my newish housemates actually did it! Check it out!
The fenced in area, finally cleaned up!
They marked off the different plants with string, all professional-like.
Potted plants left behind by previous tennants were salvaged and put in the garden area as well.
The lawn furniture fit in perfectly, making it a lovely little place to retreat.
I had absolutely nothing to do with this garden; it was all the housemates. But they did an amazing job and I can’t wait to have homegrown veggies to cook with!
As long as I’m here I have quite a bit of knitting to report on.
1. I finished my Napoleon vest:
Napoleon
I never got around to taking a picture other than that one, late at night in my room just after I finished putting it together. I’ve worn it a few times and I always get nice compliments. The Hillside Linen ended up being a nice choice; it’s light and breathable, and after a quick tumble in the dryer it softened up wonderfully. It’s a bit on the warm side, but not too much.
2. Soft Linen Shawl:
Soft Linen Shawl
I really just wanted an excuse to knit this pattern, which I thought was gorgeous due to its simplicity. It knit up super quickly. I used the Classic Elite Soft Linen, which was amazing to knit with. This will be used as a birthday gift for a family member.
3. Grrr:
Grrr
Knitty’s Grrr, a pattern for a co-worker at the yarn shop that is having a baby at some point in December. We had a baby shower last week with the ladies at the shop. It was nice to get out and spend time with them outside of the store! I used Mission Falls 1824 cotton, which really looks fantastic for this pattern. The texture of the cotton adds a lot of interest to the loops that make the mane.
4–6. Turn a Square:
I decided to make one for my dad for his upcoming birthday, but my gauge is always a bit on the tight side so it ended up too small.
Turn a Square 1
It fits me perfectly but I think it’d be too snug for him. So I decided to keep it and make another one on bigger needles.
Turn a Square 2
I kind of fell in love with this one. The blues and greens are fantastic. Alas, it heads off to Dad later this week. After making two I thought, what the hell, I’ll make another one! These first two are both made with Cascade 220 and the same skein of Noro Silk Garden.
Turn a Square 3
For this last one I used Cascade 220 and some crappy acrylic stuff from JoAnn Fabrics. I actually kind of like it. The color changes are a bit too slow, though. I wish I would have made it back to the red at some point in the striping.
7. Quincy:
Quincy
This is a hat from Jared Flood’s pattern booklet through Classic Elite. I used some Araucania Azapa, which is a fantastic yarn. The hat stretched out a bit too much while blocking, though … mostly due to my cat Ronnie getting a hold of it and dragging it around the house. SIGH. Stupid cats. I’ll probably make another one of these soon. I really love the twist (which you can’t really see in the picture unfortunately).
8. Zoe:
Zoe
While I was test-knitting this pattern I made another version, half for the test-knitting and half to do some stash-busting. The yarn is a bit too busy for me, but I like the way the ruffle turned out this time around.
So there you have it. Lots of knitting and a pretty garden. Now if only school was as pleasant …
ek
p.s. Beatles Rockband is AMAZING.
p.p.s. Beatles Remastered Stereo Set is also amazing.
p.p.p.s. Futurama Complete Collection: i haz it. Nothing like a life-sized Bender head in my living room.
