Peacock Feathers Shawl

This is the reason why no grass was moving in my blog for almost two weeks - I was devoted to finish this shawl for no reason. It's not a gift, not a job, nor to commemorate any occasion. I. JUST. WANT. TO. FINISH. IT. I am obsessive compulsive like that when it comes to knitting. That's also one of the reasons why I only work on one project at a time. Another reason - not keeping a journal.

The pattern for this shawl is all in chart except for the first 12 rows. I know there are many knitters out there who adore charts but I am not one of them. I have a huge problem with them when I was working on Backyard leaves from Scarf Style. Even though I finally got it, I still prefer working with written instructions which I think it requires less thinking.

I made quite a number of mistakes along the way but always correct [not frog] them whenever I got to them. So there are some holes that are smaller than the rest. I am not going to point them out to you but you are welcome to find them if you want. This is where I have a question (or two) for all you readers. Do you frog or correct your mistake? Do you mind having a couple of stitches that are either too loose or tight?

This is the first time I use Zephyr Wool-Silk and I love it knitting with it although I am still trying to get use to knit with lace yarn. One thing about yarn, my bamboo circulars now have reddish tint at the points and the water was slightly pink when I wash the shawl. Is it always the case with this yarn? O, and has anyone tried their DK weight? Check out Sarah's Yarn, her Zephyr Wool-silk is the cheapest I can find.


This picture shows the shawl in Day 2.

This picture shows the true color of the yarn.

Picture taken in the evening, that's why it is a little orangey.
*Pattern: Peacock Feathers Shawl from Fiddlesticks Knitting
*Yarn: Jaggerspun Zephyr Wool-Silk in Ruby
*Needles: Cheap Bamboo circular from eBay in 4.0mm (US 5) and 3.5mm crochet hook
*Cost: US$25.95 ($16 for yarn + $9.95 for pattern)

*Cast on: August 16, 2006
*Cast off: August 29, 2006

Swap Meet

I didn't tell you sooner but I realize that I need to be honest. I lost my first to Whose lace is it anyway? Knitters Lace Swap. How was it? Very satisfying! I am not sorry to say that I will do it again and again and again. Why? Because my lacey friend is great! Come look at what came in the mail on Monday.

A package from France!


Everything was contained in this bubblewrap, held together by this cute pin. Where did you find that, Dorothee?

Look at this! Wouldn't you just be as excited to receive this package? Here is a breakdown of what's in it

• * 10 skeins of Rowan Scottish Tweed 4 ply
• * 2 skein of red soft lace alpaca 780 metres
• * US 7 Addi Turbo 60 inches
• * The Pacific Northwest shawl
• * Handmade Ultra Cute Bear (can I have the pattern please)
• * flower markers and clip
• * A bag of honey candy that is ruining my diet

Tomorrow is the last day to sent out Whose lace is it anyway? Knitters Lace Swap package and I have finally put together what I think my lace pal would like. So the package will be out in the mail tomorrow. I know it's a little late, hope my pal won't mind waiting :p. Also, I want to thank Donna and Ailsa for organizing this swap.

While we are still at this topic, Secret Pal 9 will be open for signups starting September 1, 2006 till September 30, 2006. You know who will be there, don't you?
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I know this blog hasn't been update for a while but there is a reason for that. I was trying to finish this mofo. It was FINALLY completed last night and washed and blocked today. You will get to see it on me tomorrow.

Michael Kor Aran Tee

Finally! I have left this sweater on the back burner for a couple of months because I do not like picking up stitches from the neck. Since I finished my DFS and have not gotten yarn for projects that interest me, I picked it up again yesterday to work on the neck. 4 hours and searching for help online (for tubular bind off) later, I can show it off at last.


I first started on this tee many months ago, finished the back piece and was working on the front piece when I realized I messed up the entire decreasing part of the front. Frustrated, I restart the entire sweater again, this time working it in the rounds because I am terrible in seaming. I altered the stitches so that the pattern still remains the same. Another alteration I did was shortening the sleeves.


This sweater is many firsts for me. I learned tubular cast on from Anna and tubular bind off (knit-one purl-one bind-off) from knittinghelp.com. The results of those techniques give the ribbing a more professional look, I think. Although they do take a lot more time than long-tail cast on and basic bind-off, it's worth the effort.

Specs:
* Pattern : Michael Kor Aran Tee from Vogue knitting Holiday 2005
* Yarn : Baruffa Maratona, US 8 bamboo circular needles
* Started : Can't remember
* Ended : August 8, 2006

Fancy Diamond

I knitted a Kiri a while ago, my first lace shawl. However, in my excitment to get it finished and blocked, I put it in the washer with a little detergent in the pre-soaked cycle and it came out felted. My heart dropped when I saw it and tried my best to get it back to shape but it's still in its shrunken state. I told a lady at my LYS about my plight, she suggested soaking the shawl in water and LOADS of detergent and reblock it by stretching it out. I still haven't try this yet. Anyone out there has used her method?

This time when I blocked my newly finished Diamond Fantasy Scarf/Shawl, I used the steam from the iron to relax the wool. I think it works great! From pinning the shawl down to having it dried took less than 2 hours. So I am now a proud owner of a DFS.


This pattern calls for 6 repeats for a scarf and 10 repeats for shawl; I did 7 repeats and I am glad I did. One more repeat would require me to get more yarn, and one less repeat would make DFS too small for my liking. To finish this shawl, the designer uses I-cord edging which took [me] a long time but the results is totally worth it.

Specs:
* Pattern : Diamond Fantasy Scarf/Shawl by Sivia Harding
* Yarn : 1 Skein of Bare, Merino wool Fingering weight yarn from Knit Picks
* Needle : Ebay Bamboo 32" circular in 4.0mm, 5.0mm for I-cord Edging
* Started : August 2, 1006
* Ended : August 8, 2006

Jaywalker

Needless to say, what I was knitting with my home dyed yarn is the famous Jaywalker by Grumperina. I am very surprised by how the sock turned out; very uniform stripe pattern. Note to self: the next time I dye, I want to achieve stripes like Vesper Self striping socks. I took a picture of Calla Lily Sock next to Jaywalker to compare the two. Sundara's yarn has more vibrant colors and they shine whereas Kool-Aid creates muted colors.

hehe, you can see stitch holder and knitting needles because I don't have tapestry needle to finish them. But do not worry, the tapestry needles should be here next week.

Even though I knit the two socks with the same US1 Addi turbo, cast on 76 stitchs for Jaywalker, and cast on 63 stitches for Calla Lily Socks, Jaywalker is tighter on my foot. Was it the pattern or the yarn? Oh, another downside of my Jaywalker, they are not superwash wool. I still have 2 skeins of undyed yarn from knitpicks.com which I might exchange for their new dyeable sock yarn that are machine washable. Then I won't have to worry about them felting.

I started on another project this week. Look at it.

Why did I start on this? Because I want to have this. I cannot get over how beautiful it is. I need to have one! But what I am knitting now is a test run. I am making this Diamond Fantasy Shawl by Sivia Harding with Knit Picks Sock yarn which is only $3.99 for 440 yarns of soft merino yarn. Nothing can beat that price! Besides, I have already wind up the skein into a ball, there's not way I can do a return or exchange. So why not put it in good use?

Before I forget, a few of you asked about the flavors I used for my yarn dyeing. Here is the list:

Deep Red - Black Cherry + Grape
Pink - Pink Lemonade
Green - Lemon Lime
Orange - Orange
Yellow - Lemonade

This is a better resource. Hope you have as much fun playing with Kool-Aid as I did.