Sunday, October 12, 2014

Cold, Warm, Cooler, Warmer, Rain, Rain, Rain, Rain...

Welcome to autumn in the Midwest!

I did some fall cleaning of my to-do list for knitting, updated my plans for 2015 projects list, and cleaned up my WIPs piles around the ranch.

Currently, I have a length-wise scarf in silk yarn and camel/silk yarn that's just monkey knitting. I take to places/gatherings were I do more talking than paying attention to the pattern.

And then I have this in the works, based on the Women's Shrug Bolero Jacket. It's more a vest, and it's made out of local alpaca wool, spun with bits of merino wool. I've added a few inches to each panel as "the girls" are much larger than any of the models I've seen wearing the shrug/vest.

I've said it before, I'm not one for "mock cables." However, this? It's actually quite nice in the patterned panel.

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Saturday, October 04, 2014

Six Weeks Later And There's Snow Flurries

Seriously. Back in August, heat and humidity we had not seen all summer long this year. Today? Snow flurries this morning as I walked the Tank. Welcome to living in the Midwest.

And while the blog has been idle of news, I have not been so unproductive. I studied like a possessed person and passed my boards (massive relief), managed to catch my first cold of the autumn season (damn it), and get a bit of knitting done.

This is for a friend who celebrated a milestone birthday this year:

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It went through several styles of scarf before I settled on the cowl in the bee stitch. It's lightweight, soft, smooshy, incredibly warm, and the color is a delight. Good thing it's not blue or I'd have to knit the friend something else!

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Down and dirty details:

Needle
US 8 - 5.0 mm

Yarn
Jade Sapphire Mongolian Cashmere 4-ply

How much?
2 skeins = 400.0 yards (365.8 meters), 110 grams

Colorway
Raisin d etre

Purchased at
Jimmy Beans Wool in Reno, Nevada

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Next up, I'm continuing work on the Ribbed Bolero Vest in which I may looking like a molting yak, but it'll be cozy when I'm not taken hostage by Fire In The Disco this fall and winter.