Makers' Monday - Shawls for Mom

Welcome to Makers' Monday, a celebration of knitting designers, artists & creatives.

It's hard to believe but Mother's Day is only about four weeks away.  Do you knit for Mom?  I never knit a shawl for my mom but I wish I had.  I think she would have liked to receive, and would happily have worn, any of the following.  Perhaps in honor of Mother's Day & remembrance of my own mom, I should knit myself a shawl.  (Or maybe even six!)

Magic Spring Shawl courtesy of Katerina Bobkova

I will definitely knit myself this Magic Spring Shawl sometime soon.  It reminds me of a smaller & simpler version of a Find Your Fade and I think we all know by now how much I loved knitting that.  The Magic Spring Shawl is a free (gotta love that!) Ravelry pattern designed by Katerina Bobkova of Cathy-Cathy Designs.

Or perhaps you'd like a hint of lace.

Simple Spring Shawl courtesy of Michelle Krause

The Simple Spring Shawl has just a tiny bit of lace to break up the garter stitch monotony.  Designed by Michelle Krause of Leah Michelle Designs, this would be a great beginner's lace project or movie knitting for more advanced knitters.  The lace appears to be fairly simple & easily memorized.  You won't have to play yarn chicken when knitting the Simple Spring Shawl.  Just weigh your yarn before you start, then knit until you've used up half, then begin the decreases.  Simple!

Woodland Spring Shawl
courtesy of Christina Wall

Or how about knitting a Woodland Spring Shawl?  Designed by Christina Wall of A Knitter's Life, this triangular shawl appears to be about half garter stitch and half lace.  I really like knitting this style of shawl.  You start off with simple garter and you can make lots of progress quickly.  About the time you start to think you'll go mad from garter stitch, the lace begins and holds your attention to the very end.

Primula Spring Shawl courtesy of Linda Choo

Or how about this beauty designed by Linda Choo for Garden Canadensis?  The Primula Spring Shawl is crescent shaped with an all-over lace pattern.  The size of this shawl can easily be adjusted by knitting more border repeats.  And while we're talking about the border, those pesky border nupps can easily be replaced with beads.  (Y'all know how I feel about knitting nupps!)

Spring Flowers & Butterflies Shawl,
courtesy of Katherine Bryant

This one has the dreaded nupps too but once again, they could easily be replaced with beads.  And we'll forgive Spring Flowers & Butterflies Shawl for those nupps because look what else it has - Lilies of the Valley!   I LOVE Lilies of the Valley.  They happen to be my birth month flower plus they remind me of my mom.  She had acres of them growing in the yard. (Okay, "acres" is a slight exageration, but she had a lot.)  The house always smelled of Lilly of the Valley in the spring.  Even more exciting than the Lilies of the Valley, Katherine Bryant, the designer, is offering the pattern for free on Ravelry!  And, Ms. Bryant is kind enough to tell us in advance how many beads we'll be needing.  This pattern is definitely going near the top of my Ravelry que.

And last but not least, I wanted to mention the Sundae Summer shawl.  I wasn't able to obtain permission to use a photo but I thought it was worth mentioning.  It's a free Ravelry pattern, it appears to be extremely simple and quick to knit and you could make the pattern your own by changing up the weight and/or fiber content of the yarn.  The pattern is so simple, with the right yarn, you could probably wait until Saturday afternoon to start knitting and still have it finished by Mother's Day morning.

Will you be knitting for Mother's Day?  Feel free to share pattern suggestions in the Comments below.

Santa Came Early

Santa came early this year!

Wooly Project Bag

One of the ladies in my Monday Night Knitting Group made each of us a project bag.  The fabric is The cutest!  The top fabric is hat and scarf wearing sheep knitting and the bottom fabric has sheep all over it.  If you look closely, you'll see that the sheep are really just balls of yarn with sheep faces.  And if you look closer, you'll notice that some of them still have their ball bands on them.  It's adorable!

Besides being adorable, the bag is the perfect size - not too small, not too large.  It's also got a drawstring closure and a removable hook on the outside for hanging spare stitch markers, a small pair of scissors, a tape measure, my car keys....  You don't have to be a fortune teller to know that this bag is going to see a lot of action!

Check

This must be a record for me.  It's only October 14th & I'm already checking off the first item on the Christmas Gift Knitting list.

Gift #1

Pardon the photo.  It's barely one step above black & white.  I was too lazy/rushed to move the mannequin further from the window & the sun is streaming in and the back lighting is well...  You can see for yourself.  But this time, it's actually okay with me that my photo is horrible.  Maybe the cowl's recipient won't recognize it for what it is.

The yarn is Mirasol Sami purchased back in the summer from the wonderful folks at Knitting B and the pattern is a simple 5 x 5 rib pattern.  So simple, so soft, so thick, squishy and warm.

On the needles

I'm still knitting on the green Christmas gift.

Christmas gift knitting

I think the yarn has magical powers.  For two days, I've been knitting away, thinking that I'll come to the end of the skein any moment.  The end never comes though.  Sort of like the end of this project.

Yes, this Christmas gift is starting to have that never ending feel to it.  I'm having to fight the urge to start a new project, or twenty.  Instead of finishing the thing on my needles, I just keep adding to my Things To Knit in 2016 list.  I could knit 24/7 for the next ten years and not finish everything on my 2016 list.  Good grief!

Oh well, at least I won't struggle with coming up with a list of things to knit in 2017.

August in review

Have I mentioned how much I love my summer job?  I do, I love it!  Except in August.  By the time August rolls around I'm so tired I don't even know my own name anymore.  And by the end of August, well, I can barely tolerate my job.  But it's no longer August.  It's September 1st!  September!  September means weekends only (for the most part and starting next week.)  I can handle September.

But, did I get any knitting done in August?  Any at all?  Let's review.

Starshower

I started and finished a Starshower cowl.  It's still in a heap on my desk and not blocked but.... the knitting part is done.

Regia 6-fadig socks

I started and finished knitting a pair of socks.  A whole pair!  I still haven't kitchnered the toes yet but I'll get to that soon.  Soon, like next Tuesday.

Antarktis

I started an Antarktis shawl.  I'm a lot further along than the pattern would have you believe.  I'm only on row 40 according to the pattern but as I said, the pattern is deceptive.  The way it's written, it gives you rows 1 through 4, then tells you to repeat those rows X times.  Then the next row is numbered #5 although really you're on row 20 or 30 something of actual knitting.  The entire pattern is written that way.  It makes following the instructions easy which is a good thing (specially during August!) but mentally.... mentally it's hard to keep going when you have knit and knit and knit, day after day after day and you're still only on row 40.  Luckily, this Pittura just may be my new all-time favorite yarn so knitting day after day after day with it is not that much of a struggle.

Christmas knitting

And then there's the Christmas knitting.  I know!  I started my Christmas knitting in August this year!  I'm determined not to spend another Christmas Eve trying to block some hand knitted gift over the car's heat vent while barreling down the road on the way to deliver presents.  Nope!  Not going to happen this year.  This year, I will spend that entire car ride wrapping the gifts.  Hey - don't judge. It's progress.

On its way

Great White (remember the great white thing?) is finally on its way to its new owner.  I hope she enjoys using it.

The Great White Baby Blanket

I'm also really happy that the humidity finally dropped enough to be ale step outside without instantly fogging up my glasses and camera lens.  It's been a long, humid summer.

If you're interested in how I knit the Great White baby blanket (yes, it was a baby blanket) I'm putting a quick and dirty version of the pattern below.  The blanket is basically stockinette & reverse stockinette squares surrounded by a garter stitch border.  You could easily change the number of stitches and rows to accommodate any yarn weight.

Simple Checkerboard Baby Blanket:

Aran Weight yarn and #8 needles or size needed to obtain gauge

Gauge:  4 stitches per inch or 16 stitches per 4 inches

K = knit

P = purl

pm = place marker

sm - slip marker

BO = bind off

Cast on 180 stitches

Row 1:  Knit 10 stitches, place marker, knit 160 stitches, place marker, knit 10 stitches.

Row 2 - 18:  Knit across all stitches

Row 19:  K 10 stitches, sm, *K 10, P 10* to marker, sm, K 10

Row 20: K10, sm, knit the knits & purl the purls to marker, sm, K10

Row 21 - 34:  Repeat Row 20

Row 35:  K10, sm, *P 10, K10* to marker, sm, K10

Row 36 - 48: Repeat Row 20

Continue working Rows 19 - 48 until blanket is 2 inches short of desired length.  

Knit across for18 rows.

Bind off.

Please note:  I typed this pattern up based on the notes I scribbled while knitting the blanket.  I have not tested these written instructions.  If you decide to test them, please let me know if you find errors.  I'd love to hear from you.

On the needles

I'm excited about today's OTN project but I can't tell you much about it yet because it's a gift.  But  

soon....

OTN 10/23/15

The other thing I'm excited about is that yarn.  Oh my gosh!  I don't think I've ever loved a colorway as much.  The yarn is Falling For You from Knit Knot Studios.  The moment I saw it, I knew I had to have it.   And now that I have it, it is absolutely killing me not to be knitting a pair of socks with it.  I'm not allowing myself to ball the yarn though because I know that as soon as I do, I'll start knitting with it.  And before I knit a pair of socks for myself, I have a bit of Etsy and Christmas gift knitting to do.  Damn Christmas knitting!

On the plus side, I have scratched a few things off my Etsy shop knitting to-do list this week.

Red Slouchy Hat

I photographed & listed this red slouchy hat.  You can tell I love knitting this design since I have several different color variations of it in my shop.

Watch Cap

I've also finished several different sizes of this watch cap plus a matching cowl.  I love the yarn's colorway & I liked the yarn itself, but it's a super bulky yarn and super bulky yarns don't get along with my carpal tunnel issues.  It's a shame because I can knit for 14 hours straight to finish a hat in fingering weight yarn and my hands/wrists are fine, but I spend an hour or so knitting with bulky yarn and I have to wear the carpal tunnel wrist brace for the rest of the day and night.  It's the main reason you won't find very many bulky knits in my shop.

Okay, well, I'm off to go buy dog food.  I'd rather be home knitting, but the dogs are pretty excited about my plans.  They do like to eat.

Slouchy hats

I recently had an Etsy customer request a slouchy hat in a particular shade of purple.

Custom Ordered Purple Slouchy Hat

While shopping for the right shade of purple yarn, I discovered the red and green yarns were on sale.

Green Slouchy Hat

After knitting & shipping the purple hat, I knit a green one and the red hat is on the needles now. I expected to complete the red one while at work over the weekend, but it turned out to be a gorgeous fall weathered weekend.  Since the weather was so beautiful, the park was busy and when the park is busy, I'm busy and when I'm busy, I have to work and not knit.  But tonight or maybe tomorrow if I get lazy, I'll have a red hat finished as well.

I really like this hat design.  The hat is slouchy enough to hold either dreadlocks or my crazy-thick hair.  The yarn is acrylic so it's easily washed.  The pattern is an open weave so it's probably not the hat for making snow angels, but it's warm enough for most southern climate fall and winter days but not so hot that it can't be worn indoors as a fashion accessory.  If you're interested, you'll find the green hat, plus several other color options, in my Etsy shop, Jeannie Gray Knits.  While I hesitate to mention it while I'm still enjoying candy corn, it's never too early to begin Christmas shopping.

OTN - Garnet Lace

On the needles today is still the lacy, slouchy, Christmas gift hat.

Hmmm, there's a lot to say about that photo.  First, Mr. Creepyhead is modeling it rather than Mrs. Creepyhead because Mrs. Creepyhead is more child sized than adult female sized and that hat will be a gift for someone who shares my DNA which means their head is the size of Texas.

Second, it's actually a pretty lace pattern.  Simple, but pretty.  It will look much better after blocking.  I hope!

Third, I can't tell if the photo is blurry or not.  One minute it is, the next minute it looks clear & crisp.  I've been dealing with a migraine since yesterday morning but luckily, (maybe, depending on how I look at it) rather than the massive headache, my vision is impaired.  Everything is sort of wavy & slightly acid trippy. (Or should that be tripy? Obviously I don't know my spelling rules & SpellCheck wasn't around in the 60's & doesn't recognize it.)  Anyway, my apologies if the photo is way out of focus.

Fourth, the hat is knit with Knit Picks Palette in Garnet Heather with my new Knitters Pride Karbonz US 3 interchangeable needles that I bought from Webs.  The needles are super pointy & great for lace.  I may have to ask Santa for a full set.

I haven't made a ton of progress on the hat because it's my "at home" project and I haven't been at home.  My daughter's drivers' ed has taken over our lives and we've been spending 6+ hours a day (counting travel time) there.  The class is too far away from our house to come home between dropping her off & picking her back up so I've been spending a LOT of time at Starbucks.  I haven't mastered the art of knitting lace, reading and people watching all at the same time.  And there are some very interesting people to watch at Starbucks.  But, progress will be made soon.  Sarah had her behind-the-wheel test last night & passed with flying colors.  Another week of classroom learning & she'll be done.

The Walmart Experience

So, we had a fun day at Walmart yesterday.  And by "fun" I mean I'm bouncing between livid & a Twilight Zone version of "OMG! Did that just happen?"  As I said, part of me is pretty damn irritated.  Part of me is totally creeped out and part of me is giggling over the experience.

So, what happened...

We were having a girls day out yesterday.  "We" being myself, my friend, my daughter & my friend's daughter.  We'd shopped a while, had lunch & ended up in Walmart because the girls wanted to look at makeup & us grownups needed a few groceries.  We entered the store, the girls went one way & us grownups went the other way.  Eventually the kids texted to say they were bored, lets meet and check out.

After checking out, as we were leaving the store, we were stopped by a man in baggy pants & a sweatshirt, not a Walmart uniform.  He wasn't wearing a name tag but he had one in his hand.  (Alex.  Alex from Walmart.  And since I had just learned about the Alex from Target phenomenon a few days before, it turned on my giggle switch.)  He mumbled something & at first I thought he was asking us to complete a survey or something.  Then it became clear that he was asking if the girls were our kids.  Next we were told we had to follow him to the office because the girls had done ...mumble, mumble, mumble something we couldn't understand.

What it all boiled down to was that Alex from Walmart had seen the girls pick up an item off the discount aisle & when he saw them a few aisles later, they didn't have the item in their hands anymore.  Therefore, they must have stolen it.  The girls explained that yes, they'd picked up the item then decided against buying it & put it back.  Alex from Walmart again mumbles his story about how the girls must have stolen it.  The girls gave their story.  Alex repeated his mumble, the girls repeated their story.  On & on this went.  Eventually my friend insisted on either speaking to the store manager or a police officer.  Conveniently for Alex from Walmart, neither was available.  Finally, he allowed us to leave with a mumbled, "we'll have to take your word for it."  No apology.  No understanding at all that someone might change their mind about buying something.  Not to mention this guy had apparently followed our girls around the store for almost an hour.  That just creeps me out.  And it upsets me that we were made to follow this guy, who wasn't wearing a uniform or a name tag into an out of the way office.

So, okay.  I realize that shoplifting is a problem, specially this time a year.  I realize that perhaps Walmart has under-cover employees looking for shoplifters.  I get that.  I even understand that they want to do their investigating in a back office out of the public's eye.  But I really do not appreciate being detained for more than 20 minutes because someone picked up an item then decided not to buy it.  Alex from Walmart did not see the girls shoplift.  Alex from Walmart was not wearing a name tag or uniform yet he expected  us to follow him into an out of the way office.  Alex from Walmart was not interested in looking to see if the girls had put the item back as they said.  Alex from Walmart didn't even seem interested in searching our girls.  In fact, I'm the one who did that and nope, no stolen merchandise.  Alex from Walmart didn't even seem to have a solution to the problem.  He just wanted to accuse us.  Repeatedly.

Anyway, the whole experience has left me ranting about Walmart.  Again.  I'm upset that the girls were accused of shoplifting simply because they chose not to buy an item & put it back.  I'm upset that Alex from Walmart apparently followed our girls around the store for quite a while without them noticing.  I'm upset with myself for following Alex from Walmart into that back office without fully understanding what he kept mumbling about.  I'm upset that there was no apology for accusing our girls for something they didn't do.  I'm upset that my daughter feels I don't trust her because I looked in her purse to make sure she didn't have the item in question.

 I have boycotted Christmas shopping at Walmart before & I am prepared to do it again.

So now, I'm off to calm myself down with some knitting.  And tease my daughter about going from jailbait to jailbird over night.

What am I knitting you ask?

The Flying Monkeys cowl is finished & has already been worn, thus the stray hair hanging off it.  Why is it that those stray hairs are never seen until you are about to publish the picture?

This is the new project but it's a secret so I won't be going into a lot of detail, not before Christmas at least.  Can you guess what it's going to be?

...

Edited for thankfulness.

Thinking about Walmart got me so worked up I forgot to be thankful.  And honestly, I'm so upset over the whole Walmart experience that I can't think thankful thoughts at the moment.  About all I can think of to be thankful for is that my daughter & I have the type of relationship where she can tell me, in a calm nontypical teen tantrum manner that I hurt her feelings for not totally trusting her & even considering that what Alex from Walmart accused her of might be true.  I hope she understands that my actions did not imply distrust, they were simply a bad reaction to a surreal, WTF moment.

Gifts in the mail

Today I'm showing my appreciation for friends who send me unexpected gifts in the mail.  Snail mail in general is so much fun to receive but finding an unexpected package in the mailbox just makes me giddy.  It rates right up there with the UPS guy having to use his handcart to make a yarn delivery!  Over the years, I've received some pretty weird things in the mail.  I've received a pair of used Crocs, a six-pack of Coke in the old green glass bottles, a cheeseburger & fries and even rum soaked sand from a friend in Key West.  (Yes, there may be a story behind a few of those gifts.)  Most recently, I received this adorable tin of popcorn from my friend Kate.

I absolutely loved receiving this!  Not only was it unexpected but the popcorn delicious, & it's an adorable Halloween decoration.  But what makes it even more special is that I can set it on the shelf over my desk with the "side view" facing out & all I see is the black with white polka-dots.  It's a perfect, year-round, scrap yarn ball storage container!  Thank you, Kate!

By the way, Kate runs a fantastic genealogy research company, so if you are in need, look her up at www.historyandheritage.co.  Besides being a wonderful friend, Kate is a trained historian with mad research skills.