Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Year in Review

I finished Windward this morning. I love it.
It was very cold getting pictures. And the wind was blowing snow off the house into my face. Not fun so I went as fast as I could go.

I was adding Windward to Ravelry when I noticed a few of my projects from 2013 weren't up yet. I spent some time adding them.

We get lots of 'the year in review' TV shows at this time of year. Here's a bit of My Knitting Year in Review.
Arizona Dreams kit from Colinette
The Inspira Cowl in Classic Elite Liberty.
The Lonely Tree Shawl in Lorna's Laces Haymarket

You can see all my projects on Ravelry. 2013 goes from Fifty One Shades of Truth to Windward 3. There are a few projects missing. I need to get pictures and will try to get them in San Diego while I'm wearing them. There is Aileen - the brown vest knit in tosh vintage. Eos - the Rowan All Seasons Chunky white cabled sweater. Lady Ermelin - the red Rowan Summerspun cardigan. All in all it was a great year in knitting.

Beth and I are on the homestretch of Homeland. 3 episodes to go. We're trying to get them in before heading out to our friends for a New Years Eve get together. I wonder if I will make it to midnight this year.  Have a good evening and I will talk to you in 2014.

Monday, December 30, 2013

Madelinetosh

A shipment is leaving Texas this week with lots of tosh.
-pashmina
-merino dk
-merino
-merino light
-pashmina worsted
-vintage
-prairie
-dk
-chunky
-sport

Looking for a tam pattern? Madelinetosh has a free one available on their website. One skein of dk.
A soft, slouchy beret with a simple lace pattern and whimsical top knit in DK to light worsted weight yarn, worked from the bottom up the hat can be more or less slouchy to suit individual tastes. Sized to fit a woman’s medium.
While we're talking about madelinetosh, there are new colours of tosh for 2014. These have been ordered and I hope to have them sometime in March or April. If there is a colour that you want in a particular base, please let us know and we will make sure that it is set aside for you when it arrives.
Cape Town Rainbox
Chicory
Ember
Farmhouse White
Hosta Blue
Medieval
Purple Basil
Red Phoenix
Sun Rose
Black Walnut

There is a new yarn coming as well. I haven't seen or touched this yarn so it has been ordered in limited colours right now. If I like it when it arrives (and you like it) we will load up on our stock.
Dandelion is a single-ply custom blend of 90% superwash merino wool, 10% fine linen. With a generous 325 yards per skein, this fingering weight yarn is more than enough yardage to complete a pair of socks and two skeins can completed a full-sized lace project. This uniquely soft, fine linen blend is hand-dyed in small dye lots.

Content:: 90% superwash merino wool, 10% fine linen
Length:: 325 yards / 297 meters
Gauge:: 26 - 30 sts = 4 inches
Suggested needle size:: U.S. size 1-2 needles
Care:: machine wash cold, air dry flat
Jordana Paige just posted this on Ravelry
Quinn in Deep Purple is our fastest-selling bag to date. Only 29 remain! We’re working on a re-order, but at this point cannot guarantee it will be available again. If we are able to re-order, it will most likely be late spring when it is back in stock. If you love this bag, don’t wait any longer to order!
We still have 3 purple in stock and then who knows. Don't wait and be disappointed.

The end is in sight. I'm using G&A right now and when G runs out I do double strand of A. Then cast off. I've been checking the weather in San Diego and it's going to be beautiful. No mohair shawl this trip...
...but I'll get lots of wear out of it here.

Tomorrow the store is open from 10-2. Then I'm coming home to hibernate until Thursday. We'll finish Season 2 of Homeland. There is also the Criminal Minds marathon. And I have Seasons 4, 5, 6 and 7 of NCIS. Lots of knitting :)

Sunday, December 29, 2013

Small Freak Out

Last night I decided to block Windward that I knit in Lorna's Laces Sportmate. I really need a blocking room. The shawl is so long that I have it doubled over to fit in my bathroom.
San Diego will be here in two weeks and if I'm taking it I need it to look good. Then I started to think about what else I was going to take. Where is my All the Shades of Truth in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock? I looked in my closet and couldn't find it. Not surprising as my closet is a mess. After a small freak out and lots of searching it was folded nicely on the sweater rack. Who would look there?? What a relief. I thought that maybe I left it in Vegas. While going through my closet I found a few other sweaters that I forgot about. Yay me!

I was writing a blog post for TNNA about getting ready for San Diego and talked about going to the zoo. I started looking for zoo pictures in my photos. Here is a great one.
The polar bears are awesome. I went to the zoo on a trip to San Diego before Beth started coming to the show. I made my friends Bev and Karen go with me. They didn't want to go to the zoo but I insisted. We sat and watched them play for at least 2 hours. At the end of the day Bev and Karen thanked me for making them go. On Beth's first trip to San Diego she went to the zoo on her own. I think she spent even longer at the polar bears. They play in the water and wrestle. You can sit outside and watch them play or you can go underground and watch through a glass wall to see them play in the water. We will start there in case they are sleeping. Then we can come back later in the day. Knowing Beth we'll have to go back even if they were playing in the morning.

All of a sudden a few pictures have come through from my mom in Myrtle Beach. One was sent December 19 and one on December 26. Weird but I'm not going to hurt myself figuring out the problem. :)
My mom is loving the task that we gave to my dad. He is out lots leaving her to rest or quilt or knit or do whatever she wants. My dad is a restless person who needs to be on the go at all times.

She wants us to find 'the next thing' that my dad can go searching for.
We are going to have lots of great display items for the store. And the Frolic booth is going to look awesome. Beth has come up with some great ideas. And we might start getting yarn to make samples in January. It's still super secret. We might not be able to talk about the yarn until it debuts at the Frolic.

It's almost football time. I have a bit of housework and laundry to do before I sit on the couch all afternoon knitting.

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Pondering...

Jennifer came in today wearing a really interesting sweater. It was store bought (we won't hold it against her-it's beautiful) and I love the cable.

I love the side vent and the fact that the sweater is longer in the back than the front. It has me thinking.
There is a bag of madelinetosh vintage in the colour whiskers sitting beside me. It would look great in a sweater like this. Big turtleneck. Hmmmm...


The other thought is Forester-a Brooklyn Tweed pattern. Then I don't have to work out the cable pattern and swatch for sizing. I don't have the pattern for Forester in the store (yet) but can be purchased on Ravelry...

Double strand on 9mm needles. Top down in the round. 

It's just me and the dogs tonight. Beth is off to Buffalo to watch our friend's son play lacrosse. He plays for the Philadelphia Wings in the National Lacrosse League. The season opens tonight.

I don't mind-there is a Criminal Minds marathon on. Hours and hours of great TV. I've seen most of the episodes so I can happily knit and don't have to pay too much attention. The shawl is almost done. It is turning out longer than I had planned - it will be great for a cold winter day.

It's time to move to the couch and knit.

Friday, December 27, 2013

Kaffe

There are going to be 7 Kaffe Fassett garments featured in Rowan Magazine #55 and the patterns will be free downloads for Row@n members. The patterns will not be available until after the magazine comes out. Not a member? No, problem. In the top right hand corner of Rowan's website you can join.






If you didn't make it in today, don't worry. We still have lots of sale yarn available! And I added a few more yarns this morning. Mini Mochi and all $16 balls of sock yarn are on for 30% off.

It was a long day (good but long) so I'm writing a short post with lots of great pictures and then going to knit for an hour before bed. 

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Happy Boxing Day

This morning I got up and decided to do a bit of Boxing Day shopping. The first stop was Pier 1. I cam home empty handed. Nothing grabbed me. I picked up Beth and we went to Golf Town. There were gift cards burning holes in our pockets. Beth got a shirt and I bought a pair of golf shoes. I didn't need them but $110 shoes for $29.97. I had to buy them. Beth then had the brilliant idea that we should go to Best Buy. We did a drive by because the parking lot was jammed. Not a parking spot to be had. Instead we came home for a day of TV and knitting. I downloaded Season 2 of Homeland and we are 4 episodes in. Beth is making dinner while I write and then another episode or two or three.

Beth loves it when Jane knits her socks for Christmas. Jane asks me to pick a colour and this is what I chose this year. Jane has been saying for months that Beth isn't going to like the colour. Jane was wrong. Beth loves them.
The yarn is Opal. Ice Cream from the Sweet & Spicy colour range. The colours that Opal put together are fabulous. And you don't have to do any work. The yarn does the patterning for you.
Beth has a helper today. She is casting off her Aleatory Cowl. She asked me if I needed her to stop knitting for a minute. I told her that she doesn't knit fast enough to make a blur while I'm taking a picture. That didn't go over well. She did proclaim while she was knitting that interchangeable needles are GOOD!!!

Don't forget that you can still get some deals on the website until midnight. 30% off of Noro, Berroco and Soakboxes. The code to enter at the check out is BOX13.

The store will open at noon tomorrow and these yarns will be on sale in the store. Plus a few more. And you never know, I could add a surprise or two tomorrow.

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Merry Christmas

I hope that everyone is having a great day with family and/or friends. Beth and I saved the Christmas gifts from Jane, Cathy and Kim until today to open. Beth was jumping up and down before church to open them but I made her wait until after. She's like a little kid.

Jane finished the Jubilee Throw.
It is amazing!!!
It is going to hang on the wall in our great room.





 Cathy made us an awesome quilt using Tula Pink fabric.
This is going to Myrtle Beach. The pillows in our sun room are made out of Tula Pink fabric. The quilt will be perfect for the room.


We're home from a great Christmas dinner at Aunt Rene's. We laughed so hard. Now it's a knitting and NCIS marathon. 

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Simple Shapes

Simple Shapes Summerpsun & Purelife Revive is another magazine coming from Rowan for spring. The yarns and magazines should be in the store by the end of January.

The brochure features 8 easy to wear garments designed by Sarah Hatton.

The yarns used are interchangeable for all the patterns which make the most of the beautiful texture of each yarn.

The collection features elegant fitted tops and waistcoats to loose fitting tops and cardigans.



Amaranth knit in Summerspun
10-15 balls
 Barley knit in Summerspun
10-14 balls
Durum knit in Revive
12-19 balls
Emmer knit in Revive
5-9 balls
Farro knit in Summerpsun
7-11 balls
Flax knit in Summerspun
7-11 balls
Kamut knit in Summerspun
9-14 balls
Spelt knit in Revive
8-12 balls

Purelife revive is our wonderful tweed effect, fully recycled summer yarn. It has a beautiful rusticity. 
Summerspun is a beautiful yarn in a 50% Merino Wool and 50% Cotton blend. The yarn is made by twisting a printed cotton end and a melange wool end together, resulting in a wonderful subtle striping effect. Summerspun is a joy to knit and crochet.
I have knit with Summerspun and really like the yarn. I haven't knit with Revive yet but Spelt looks really nice. I think it will work great into my spring/summer wardrobe.