Trying My Hand at Dyeing Yarn

Well I finally got up the nerve to attempt dyeing yarn with more than one color. I used Kool Aid yellow and pink and got a lovely pastel multicolor result (including a peachy orange where the 2 colors met). The yarn is 100% SW Merino Cherrytree Hill in the Natural color way.

The yarn has now been split into mini skeins for a swap.




Beth

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My Newest Project

I started a fun little sleep sack for my new great-nephew to be! This is a fun little item knit using 100% cotton yarn and it will be a great item for the baby to be put into after his bath. There will be a matching hat. I love the little owls that are made cables.




Beth


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Another Camp Loopy Project

I finished another Camp Loopy Project in the nick of time. This is Vlad with 16 body repeats (the pattern calls for 7 repeats). I love this pattern and this particular project!

More New Projects….

Well I seem to have knitter’s “startitis” I have recently started 3 new knitted projects (one of which will be a long time ongoing piece).  My niece is having her first baby in November and it’s going to be a boy.  So of course he needs a blankie.  I’m knitting him a baby blanket with sailboats on it.  I love the soft yellow color!

I’m also in the process of test knitting a shawl pattern.  It’s a fun knit with the cabled sections.  The yarn is Knit Picks Stroll Tonal in Golden Glow.

The third project is my long term project.  I’ve caught the “Blankie Mania” bug and started a Sock Yarn Blankie.  My friend Missy has been working on hers for a few months and now she’s taught me just how fun the little mitered squares are!  The plan is for the blanket to include 1008 little 2.5” mitered squares.  Time will tell how many squares I end up knitting LOL.  This picture shows the first 20 squares.

Camp Loopy Project 2 Finished!

A couple weeks ago I finished the second Campy Loopy project.  I made a pair of mittens and knit them both in 2 days (one mitten each Saturday for 2 weekends).  The challenge was to knit a pair of sock or mittens which had cabling techniques in the pattern.  I fell in love with Busybee Socks and decided to transfer the cabling pattern of the socks to a pair of plain mittens.  I just love how they turned out and I cannot wait for it to get cold enough to wear them.  The yarn is Gale’s Art Sock in the Cherry Blossom colorway.

Some Finishes, New Camp Project & an Acquisition…

I’ve had a busy few weeks in the knitting realm

I finished my Ribbon Candy Socks.  I just love this Knitting Fever Indulgence yarn, it’s super soft and the color are so me!

I also finished and finally photographed my blocked Autumn Denim Shawl.  The entrelac pattern was super fun and easy!  This will be a staple this winter for me!

Campy Loopy Project 2 cast on date was Friday, so I started my second camp project yesterday.  Today I finished my first Bee Busy in the Cherry Blossoms mitten.  These are fun and easy and it actually fits me perfectly!

And a closeup of the cable pattern:

I also decided to finally try out Signature Needle Arts needles and ordered my first pair of their straight needles last week.  You choose your needle size, point style and end style to suit your tastes.  I love super sharp points so I chose stiletto points for my size 1 needles in 7” length with teardrop ends.  The needles are not inexpensive, but will be worth it if they are as good as many have said!

The yarn the needles are propped in is the yarn I’m using for a baby cardigan intended for my niece’s first baby boy due this fall.  If there’s enough yarn leftover I’ll make a matching hat as well.

A Couple New Furbabies!

A few months ago we lost our dog, Max, and we have gone back and forth trying to decide if we wanted to adopt a new puppy, a older dog or just live without a dog for awhile.  Well I found out that there were a couple of older dogs that were in need of a new home.  So please meet Mollie (the black Miniature Schnauzer) and Peaches (the white Bichon Frise).  Both doggie are over 12 years old and are just a couple of bundles of joy!  They are acclimating very well to their new home.

Finished Shawl!!

I finished my “Wearing Coveralls in the Rainforest” Aestlight Shawl a few days ago but it took me a few days to get outside and take pictures of it.  I am just thrilled with how this one turned out!  What a fun and easy shawl to knit with wonderful Hazel Knits Artisan Sock Yarn.

My Vampires are Back!!!

Tonight the first episode of True Blood’s Season 4 aired!  With the beginning of each season comes the True Blood Knit Along.  This year we are knitting a shawl called “Vlad”.  I knit this shawl a few weeks ago before it was chosen for the KAL so I am knitting a second one now.

The yarn I chose is True Blood inspired and is Coulorphobia Sookie Sock Yarn in the Fangtastical and Loving It! colorway:

I cast on during the opening scene and managed to knit through 2 body repeats during the episode.  I think I’m going to try to only knit on this one while watching the show.

I also have to share my patriotic nail art in honor of July 4th…

Wish me luck, tomorrow morning I’m having 2 teeth pulled.  One of them has caused me an enormous amount of pain over the last week or so and I will be so happy when I leave the oral surgeon!

Shawl redux….

Perhaps I should have thought about which color to use as the main color before I started knitting.  Once I got to the Bird Eye Lace border and joined the contrasting color I realized that I should have switched the colors.  So yesterday I decided the give the shawl a “do over” and restarted it using the blue tonal as the main color.  I am now to the point of picking up the side stitches to start the lace borders.  I think that I will be much happier with the shawl now

Couldn’t Wait to Start….

Well I rushed home from work tonight and wound my new yarns so that I could start my new knitting project.  I am totally in love with the Hazel Knit Artisan Sock Yarn that I’m using for this project!  It I sooo soft and squishy and it will feel wonderful around my neck this winter!  I’ve already knit a pretty decent amount of the center triangle.  I should be able to start the openwork lace border this weekend at knitting group.  Gotta love a quick and fun project!

The Next Project

I joined a challenge over at my favorite online yarn shop, The Loopy Ewe, called “Camp Loopy”.  This challenge is a series of 3 projects to be made over the summer and the first is to knit a 2 color scarf or shawl.  So I found the yarn and pattern I wanted to use and placed my order on Friday afternoon.  Today my yarn arrived and I am just itching to start knitting my Aestlight Shawl.  I think tomorrow after work I will wind my yarn and might even cast on.  I’m still trying to decide which yarn I want to use for the main body and which will be the openwork lace.  Guess I better hurry up and figure that one out, LOL

Reviving the Blog!

WOW!  I can’t believe I haven’t posted to the ole blog for over a year!  I have been a knitting MACHINE and done very little quilting.  Yarn is overtaking the fabric in my studio LOL.  I know I will return to quilting one day, but for now I’m enjoying a hobby that doesn’t sequester me from other people in a room of my own.  In fact the only time I go into the studio is to put yarn away, wind yarn for a project or blocking a project.  The last quilt I finished was a Tshirt quilt in November for a friend using her late Father in law’s Tshirts.  It turned out lovely and the family was very happy with the result.

Here’s a picture of it:

On the knitting front I’ve finished lots of socks and several scarves and shawls.  At the moment I’m working on a pair of socks using a fun self striping yarn in my favorite colors (pink, green and yellow).  I knit all of my sock using a 2 at a Time Toe Up Magic Loop method.  Here’s the socks in progress:

I’m also working on my first Entrelac piece.  It’s a lovely shawl and the pattern is called “Autumn”.  I’m using Jojoland Rhythm yarn which is a self striping yarn and alot of fun!  I think this shawl will look great with jeans this winter!  Here’s what the finished shawl will look like:

And here’s mine in progress:

I also participated in a Summer Mystery Knit Along host by my favorite sock pattern designer, Wendy Johnson.  The shawl pattern was alot of fun and I used Dream In Color Smooshy yarn in the Into the Mystic colorway.  Here’s a picture of the finished shawl:

I’m happy to be back to blogging and I’ll do my best to keep blogging away!

Happy Knitting and Quilting!