assorted

No pics of it yet, but I'm steadily working on my bolero. I was a wee bit concerned that I would be running out of yarn, because I decided to not do the decreases on the front- I'm busty enough that I want as much fabric there as possible- and I think I'm going to make it a little bit longer- and cables use extra yarn too. So I bought a couple more skeins at the Double Ewe.
I am really quite happy with this project. I put one of the arms on the needle last night, so now I can work on either the body or the arm, whichever appeals to me in the moment.
I am really pondering whether or not I should start St Brigid. I love it so much, and I think I know what yarn I want... and I've got that 25 per cent off coupon waiting for me... So yarn cost would be around 70 bucks... thats really good for a sweater. Especially this sweater. We'll see.

Cough, cough, hack... can you hear me now?

Hello friends, I have had a really hard week. I had a cold last week, and I thought it was over. But no. I have bronchitis. Ick.
So, I haven't been in school because, well, I'm miserable, and so doped up on cough syrup that I don't think it would be safe for me to drive there. So I've been doing some knitting, no spinning (too much precision involved in that) and a lot of watching of tv. I just got hooked on the Ghost Hunters show of the Sci-Fi channel- its entertaining at least. But all of that still can't distract me from the fact that every time I cough, I feel like I'm hacking up my lungs. Ugh...
The bolero is going alright. I'm finally at the spot where I put the sleeve stitches on a scrap piece of yarn and cast on the underarm stitches. Woo. That's pretty exciting.
I am a bit concerned just about the wearability of this sweater, as its in super bulky yarn. It is a bolero, so it has a sort of open design, it is cropped a bit, and I think I might shorten the sleeves to 3/4 length. So maybe it will be ok. After all, it gets cold here eventually.
Anyways. I've got nothing left. Here's a video of an alpaca to distract you. Enjoy!

Hemlock Bolero

This is what I call my Hemlock Bolero. I am working on it sporadically- it's great tv and car knitting. It is from Knitting Pure and Simple, and the only change I've made are the cables going down the arms- the stockinette got too boring and I was losing interest, plus my gauge was off, so I frogged and started again. I really like it so far- the color is perfect, and the yarn (harrisville bulky) is so soft, and even smells good!
Not much else happening on the knitting front, been spending most of my time on ravelry.

Spinning joy!

Did I mention I got a spinning wheel? Well I did! For the first week, I just read books about spinning, checked out various websites, and practiced treadling while watching tv. Finally, Friday afternoon, I got sick of just treadling, and got out my Corriedale roving, naturally dyed a beautiful mix of lavender and pink, and got started. It wasn't easy. Whenever you go to fiber fests, you see all these spinners, spinning while chatting and never batting an eyelash. They are highly gifted individuals. I started and stopped, started and stopped so many times, and my cats heard vocabulary that no domesticated beast ought to hear. But eventually I got into the rhythm of it, and really enjoyed it. I am amazed at the quantity of wool that I can spin now- it is SOOO much faster than a drop spindle. The consistency is much improved as well- the yarn is more relaxed and at 2 plies, is a nice bulky weight. I am impressed! So if you have ever considered upgrading to a wheel, I say, do it! It makes spinning such a joy!

I'm Back! And at Ravelry too!

Hi! Well, I've been occupied for a while now... In non knitting news, I was in a car accident, but since then have gotten a new car, so I'm not too shaken up. You can see a pic of it (its PRETTY!) on my writing blog. With knitting- the biggest news is that I got my invite to Ravelry, and I'm over there as autumnsdaughter. Pretty simple, huh? I haven't listed any projects yet, but this weekend I will work on that. I bought a spinning wheel a couple weeks ago- I'll post pictures later on tonight. It is sooo nice! I don't really know what brand it is- I got it on Craigslist for $150. Yup. Good deal. And it works beautifully! So I am really happy, because I can finally get a lot of wool spun quickly. I'm working on spinning up my Corriedale that is hand dyed a lovely lavender and pink mix. It is just like cotton candy!
A little while ago, I went to the MN Alpaca Farm open house, and saw lots of beauties! I bought some yarn and some roving. Here is one of the little guys. Cute, huh? I oohed and aahed over how sweet they were- I want one! Someday....

Ladder Shawl

I finished this shawl earlier this fall, perhaps early September? It is a very easy, fast, instant gratification sort of project, courtesy of Chris Bylsma. I first bought this pattern in Arizona- a great little shop in a great little town called Jerome. She had beautiful stuff- including Lorna's Laces. So, I bought a skein of Lion and Lamb, in the colorway Watercolor. One skein of this was enough to make a scarf using the ladder pattern- it was about a third as wide as the shawl.
Well, this time I wanted a shawl, and I didn't have much yarn money, so I used what I had, which was some purple Patons merino, and scraps of other junk. I just changes yarns when I felt like it. I'm trying to remember all of the yarns that I used. I know there was some cheap novelty junk that I knit a row of here and there, to give it some sparkle. I also strung beads onto laceweight Misti Alpaca. I used some leftover Noro Kureyon, some camel/merino in grey, some light blue kid et soie. I really love the combination of textures. I love that the dropped stitches give it such drape. I thought about weaving in the ends (really, I did!) but I like the random fringe the ends created.
This shawl isn't really as long as I had hoped for- its not pashmina length. I do like using it as a large scarf. It is quite warm, but light, due to the dropped stitches.

Pumpkin Pride

New Yarn! Woo hoo! I just bought this from my favorite LYS, Double Ewe.

First off, my apologies for the crappy pic. I haven't figured out how to get a good close up of yarn yet. This is Malabrigo worsted, in the peach tree colorway. Oh, it is so soft. It is so pretty. I love it.
My cat is starting to get jealous.
What will I make with that? I hear you ask. Why, I'm glad to answer. I will make this. I am so excited. I have always wanted a pumpkin hat, but every one I've seen so far has been sized for babies or other people of the tiny persuasion. My poor head languished without a wooly pumpkin to keep it warm. So now, when I make pumpkin bread, I can proudly parade my pumpkin pride. (Pretty good alliteration, huh? I DID learn something in 9th grade!)

Now, to cast on!