Musing about: colour of the year

Pantone has announced its 'colour of the year' for 2014 - Radiant Orchid:

Image via Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/_synergy_/11229158683/

Lots of yarn out in this colour:

Berroco Vintage in Lilacs

Berroco Vintage in Aster

Malabrigo Worsted in Orchid

Cascade 220 in Deep Lavender

My plan is to knit Sophie Pullover in the new year in an orchid colourway (or one close to it).  I think the ballet neckline, cables, and 'prettiness' of the pullover will suit a flowery colour.  I think I'll use Berroco Vintage Chunky in Aster. 

chroma cap - finished!

My Chroma Cap is finished, and I love how it turned out.  Lots of colours to keep it interesting, easy to follow charts, and worsted weight for a quick knit.

chroma cap

Fair Isle seems to be in this fall and winter, so I'm knitting a hat from the book Weekend Knits (Ravelry Link).  Chroma Cap is lots of fun, lots of colour changes to play with. 

 

I plan to gift it next week for Christmas to my teaching partner, so I hope it goes quickly! 

I also plan to frog my "Ribby Toque" and knit a Wanderer Cap instead.  Hope it goes quickly too.

hats! and a scarf!

Yarn from previous post has been transformed to hats! 

From top to bottom:

leaves long beanie in navy blue Berroco Vintage

ribby toque in Brooklyn Tweed Shelter

random in Cascade 220

speer cap in red Berroco Vintage 

 

Scarf is knit in several colours of Lion Brand Cashmere and is a free pattern from Churchmouse Yarns:  One-by-One scarf.

All are in the 'gift bin' and will go out to someone this holiday!

 

 

concord update

I've been plugging away at the Concord sweater, slowly but surely.  Finished a few hats so I think I'm ready to pick it up again. 

Top one is the view of the back (with a stitch that dropped, attached to a marker for now), bottom one is a little closer to the colour, and shows one of the front lace panels.  I have about 9 inches to go in the body, plus sleeves (plan to make them short) and only 3 1/2 skeins left.... we'll see:)

knitting, fast and slow

I should be content with the process, but around this time of year the product takes centre-stage as I try to knit holiday gifts without spending extra money.  My Cape Cod is about two-thirds done.... I admit it's slow because I'm too tired from my day job to work on my evening hobbies.  Two busy kids don't help.  Where did the quiet time go?!!

But I'm on a hat-knitting frenzy right now.  Last year I knit a lot of cowls, this year it's hats.  I admit I rarely take photos as I knit and give away quickly.  My plans are:

ribby toque  in a natural shade of shelter 

random hat in a hot pink Cascade 220 (leftover from my cardigan

speer cap in red Berroco Vintage (frogged another hat for this one instead)

More hats to come, but this is a start into the holiday gifts.  Better move - it's December 8th!!!

concord cape cod

Next up is another Baby Cocktails design, Cape Cod.  I'm using Diamond Luxury Merino Bamboo, the same yarn I used for my Mandarin Mimosa, also a Baby Cocktails pattern.  This one will be made with short sleeves as I don't have the required yardage and am hoping to squeeze out a short-sleeved version.  I've just cast on, but the yarn is lovely and purple.  Not the cranberry used in a Cape Cod cocktail, but mine will be grape instead:

I'm making this as part of the Anthropologie Group KAL, with a focus on lace and patterns from group designers.  Goal is to have it done before the end of school (end of June).

believe in pink - FO

I finished my pink cropped cardigan.  Love it!  The cropped length and 3/4 sleeves mean I will get to wear it three seasons - a tee underneath in spring/fall, or a long-sleeved shirt underneath in winter.  Love the colour, it brightens me up!

Note to Self...

I stumbled across this photo when looking for knitting ideas.  Sums up exactly where I feel right now with all of life's "projects", knitting included.  A friend is having a baby.  I feel I should knit something but also realize that I don't really want to.  I want to give her something lovely for her first baby but am not entirely sure she is "knitworthy" (See my previous post on this).  Instead, I should settle in with projects I want and reaffirm that I knit for me.

source:  the creative mama

  I knit to relax, unwind, and do something selfish.  I spend all day at work, and all of the other hours at home, looking after others and solving their big and small problems.  My other hobbies - cooking and scrapbooking - also involve doing things for others (cooking meals, creating keepsakes), and I carve out just enough time to run and read that I can still technically put them under my list of "Things I Do".  Barely.  Knitting clothes and accessories for me, or for me to gift to very special friends, is something I don't want to lose.  I don't want knitting to become one more thing with a deadline and a list of 'must do' for others, and to their specifications. 

So, I fight the urge to make a cute sweater for a baby boy and instead look at spring patterns and plan to be the selfish knitter I truly need to be.

Love a challenge?

I entered the Soper Creek Yarn Store annual yarn challenge. Each year, we get partial skeins of a yarn in a few colourways, and need to use the yarn to create something.  We can purchase more, but can't use other colours than the ones provided in the challenge kit.  This year's yarn is Cascade 220 Superwash Sport in blue, red, brown, and cream.  I used more cream than given (about 2 skeins instead of 0.3 of a skein) to create my set:

I used the fingerless mitts pattern from Coastal Knits, the Branching Out Mitts.  I substituted the hearts pattern from the hat which is From Norway with Love (hat).  Easy to knit and cute, I think!

The year of Coastal Knits - and some BT

I want to focus my attention.  My knitting represents the creative outlet of my life, but also reflects a bit of my wandering attention.  I like to be inspired, buy a lot of magazines and books, and then drift from one to the next in a bit of an indecisive way - like a bee hovering over flowers, not sure which one to land on.  My solution is to spend time this year knitting the projects in Coastal Knits:

Source:  coastal knits

I bought the book a year ago (or so) and love almost all of the patterns.... I love all of them, but am pretty sure I will knit 9 of the 10.  Not sure the stole will make it to completion.  Lots of yarn at fingering weight for an accessory. 

I will start my first pattern in a week or so - the hat.  I'm also going to knit a few things from Brooklyn Tweed. 

 

 

Source: brooklyntweed.net via sarah on pinterest

First up will be Inversion, a KAL with my dearest friend Carolanne.  She's a quilter/artist with all things fibre and fabric.  The pattern was a gift from her, and we plan to carve out time in our busy lives to knit this at the same time.  Photos of the projects and yarn to come!

I believe in pink

I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.  - Audrey Hepburn

On the needles, I have Brigid.  Pattern calls it a jacket, but I'd call it a cropped cardigan.  Either way, mine is in bright fuschia.  It's done in pieces to give the garment structure, and I realize I don't mind seaming most of the time.  I have the back and both sleeves done, and have started the first front panel.

I also have my yarn challenge project for Soper Creek Yarn (my LYS).  The yarn chosen is sport-weight, so it'll take a while but I like the colours and my project will be cute when done.  Still a mystery for now:)  Stay tuned for details!

Off the needles!

Long time since a post, but lots of kntting happening.  This is my Balcony Vest.  Original pattern name is Montague, which brings to mind the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet.  I love how the lace looks in the bulky tweed yarn.  I wear this a lot, perfect layering piece for a cold workplace!

This one is a hat from Weekend Hats book, the original was in a purplish yarn, but I had navy on hand. 

 

More projects on the needles, and a few I gifted without photos (bulky cowls = perfect teacher gifts!).