Queen Anne Lace

So, another crocheted scarf. This pattern is similar but slightly different from the last one I made. It's also a bit skinnier.

I used the yarn that my sister spun up for me last year. It's a soft merino silk blend in deep wine colours, subtle variations of colour.

The only complaint I had making this is that the yarn was so silky smooth, I had a hard time holding it. When I crochet, I do it lefthanded and hold the yarn in my right hand. My right hand felt so flumbly and unable to grasp the working yarn that I could only do a few pattern repeats at a time before my hand would cramp up.

But I absolutely love this little scarf. It's a perfect weight for the coming spring early summer season. Oy, if only I was the perfect weight too!

:::

Pattern is Queen Anne Lace

Yarn is a handspun blend of merino and silk from the Artful Ewe

Crochet Hook size "G" - 4.0mm

The Corleone Scarf

What started as an idea to crochet a granny square out of noro, inspired by this incredible creation, quickly morphed into a scarf from a pattern for a bookmark. Confusing? And why the Corleone Scarf? Because I crocheted this baby, past midnight, while hubby and I watched Godfather III ~ a movie neither of us had watched since it came out, probably. I can't remember.

I finished the last picot edge as the final death scene (and boy was there a plethora of death scenes) ensued on the steps of the opera house in Palermo. Very over the top but in a fun campy way, as if death scenes on the steps of an opera house in Palermo could be anything but.

I love crocheting, but it's something I do about once a year. Now I remember why. I love the actual process so much that I can't stop myself. When I made the baby blanket out of sock yarn last year, I dreamt crocheting. I'd wake up and it was the first thing I wanted to do. And now with this scarf, I couldn't stop myself, couldn't put it down.

I love this in the noro kureyon. The colour changes are so brilliant with noro. The only complaint I have about this scarf, and it's probably me, not the pattern, is the first fan looks unfinished, especially compared to the final fan which goes all the way around. I probably read the pattern wrong.

Anyway, I gave the scarf to my daughter who seemed intrigued by its progress. She looks so cute in it...way cuter than moi.

• 2 skeins of Noro Kureyon in colourway 170
• Size "H" crochet hook
• This pattern

And speaking of cute... that Al, wasn't he a dreamboat back in the day?

hubba hubba

Ripple~Wave Socks

These are the latest socks to come off the needles, and like all previous socks, are my current favourite. If they weren't knit in such a small dainty size for my friend, I would have totally kept them for myself...ah, just kidding Grammar! I'm glad you love them. You have great taste in yarn because that colourway is one of my very favourites ever. Blues and greens....I imagine warm tropical beaches and drinks with umbrellas and all day to just laze in the sunshine.
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Well, until that happens, here's the pattern I used. It seems to work extremely well with striped yarn, really emphasizing the gentle waves that I'm imagining myself floating on...warm sand beaches, drinks with umbrellas...oh, fine. Back to reality.

Ripple~Wave Socks

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Cast on 60 stitches using size 2 u.s. or 2.75mm circular needles

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8 rows of garter stitch for the cuff.

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Leg pattern is knit over 6 rows. So every 6th row you do the pattern stitch, all other rows are knit in stockinette stitch. (rows: 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42….etc etc).

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Pattern row with 15 stitch repeat:

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K1, ssk, ssk, k1, m1, k1, m1, k1, m1, k1, m1, k1, k2tog, k2tog, k1.

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There are a couple of ways to go here with the m1 stitch. For these socks, the recipient didn’t want any lacy holes in them, so to **m1** I picked up the bar between stitches and knit into the back of that stitch.

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If you wanted a little bit of lacy hole, then you could do the same for the m1, meaning pick up the bar between stitches and knit that stitch regularly.

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If you want it more feather and fan-like…then you could do a yarn over instead of the m1.

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Proceed into whatever heel you like. My current favourite is the double-stitch short row heel from tessknits.com, but any would do. And then continue down the foot using the pattern for the top 30 stitches and straight stockinette for the bottom 30 stitches of the foot.

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Btw, why is editing in blogger so darn difficult? arrrgghhhh!

edit...I should mention that the yarn is Neptune from the Yarn Pirate, from her Booty Club, but I can't remember which month it was. It's BFL, superwash, and it's fabulous.

Happy Valentine's Day

Love ~ Peace ~ Contentment ~ Good Health ~ Happiness

~ and lots of cinnamon hearts ~

Oops

Well, this is embarrassing. I should know better than to think out loud and state that I'll be around more. The opposite usually proves true with me.

Remember that episode from Seinfeld where George does everything opposite to his instincts? That will be me this year. Or wait, no, it won't be me. I'll be so confusing, I won't know what I'm supposed to be doing and thus, it will all be brilliant when I actually do something.

I think I need more coffee. No. No more coffee.

I won't be back.

heh.

A Review

I was pretty surprised when I looked back at what I knit and wove (weaved?) in 2008. I thought it was much less than the previous year, but it seems to me that it's much more than than I thought.

I love the idea of a new year of knitting and weaving and starting fresh with new projects. I may even go ahead and just get a wheel and start spinning too. Life is short and unpredictable. Don't delay. But I also want to learn the cello....well, maybe 2010.

I also resolve (but making no promises) to make more blog posts. They can be short and sweet or long and tedious...or short and tedious...like this one is becoming!

I wish lots of good things for everyone in 2009.

~ a new year ~

Hello 2009. Welcome, come on in, take your shoes off and play nice. We've got lots of time to spend together, so let's concentrate on the good and happy and health and peace. Nothing negative please!

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Bittersweet

I'm kind of on an emotional roller coaster these days, as the holiday season approaches and memories of my mom keep invading my head. And don't even get me started on all the dreams I've been having lately.

The first Christmas without my mom. Pretty much from the year my parents moved from California to Washington, a year after Warren, Robin and I moved to BC, I've had them here at my house for Christmas. For the first 5 years it was both of them, then my dad passed away. It was a huge adjustment for my family and we missed him so much.

Mom would still come up here for Christmas; we'd attend the kids' concerts, plan dinners and baking. She'd gamely play with the kids while I did last minute shopping and wrapping. It's just the way it was. Then a couple of years ago she had a few health setbacks and it was hard for her to come up for Christmas so she'd stay at home. It was very strange not to have her here and not normal, but we'd call and talk. She was there. But this year.....

Yesterday I was tidying up my knitting area in my room, putting away a plethora of needles that had scattered around the house, small balls of yarn left over from various projects that are too precious to throw away, putting all those loose sheets of paper with various patterns printed on them into a central location. Very satisfying type of organizing. As I was doing all this puttering around, I came across something I've been avoiding these last 3 months.

My mom was knitting me an afghan. She had knit one for my sister and now it was my turn. We went to Michael's and picked out 6 skeins of Lion Brand Homespun and she took them home and started to knit for me. She had half a skein to go when she died. She was halfway across a row and had put those little nibs on the end of the needle to keep the stitches from coming off until she came back to it. But she didn't.

I brought this home with me after we emptied out her apartment and I could barely look at it. It hurt too much to see it. I put it aside, glanced at it every now and then and would say to myself, "nope, not yet." Well, yesterday I decided it was time to face it. She had worked so hard on it, all her even and perfect stitches. The idea of it just sitting in a bag in the corner of the room was suddenly horrible to me. So I got it out and finished it off last night. I sewed in all her ends, and then wrapped myself up in it ------ It feels great.

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