theraineysisters knitting and so much more

Tonight was the Minnesota Knitters Guild meeting where knitters share their state fair entries, the judges’ comments and background tidbits.  I had a great time tonight and enjoyed myself completely.  I met some of our readers, too, which was really nice!!

My favorite story involved a “helpful spouse.”  The knitter in question could not get to the fair to drop off her entries due to her crazy schedule.  DH stepped up to the plate and volunteered to do it for her.  Upon his return, I imagine the exchange went something like this:

Hubby: “Hi, Honey.  I dropped off all four of your items at the fairgrounds.”
Knitter: “Uh…four?  I only had three things to enter this year!”

Hubby took an unfinished afghany thing in — ends not woven in, fringe only partly done, and not something she would have entered anyway! They actually wrote some nice things about it… too funny.

We saw some beautiful things, and of course added way too many things to our “must knit” lists.  Afterward we got to fondle and drool over the wondrous knitting. 

My kind of evening!

Hi, fellow knitters! I have been doing a lot of knitting but because I am “multi-tasking” (i.e., suffering from startitis), I have little to show for it.

I DID finish two Hats for the Homeless and delivered them to Ingebretsen’s on Lake Street. They had a nice pile collected of vary gaudy colorful hats bearing large pom poms.  Hmmm.  I am such a “doobie” that I made two black wool hats — one a Quincy and another from my One Day Hat pattern.  No pom poms.  No color.   Boring, but that is what they said we should make!

I am also making some Christmas gifts.  I found a pattern on Ravelry for these Classic Bread Basket Liners and thought that with a cute basket and terra cotta bread warmer, it would be a nice gift.  I am using my leftover denim yarn (Riveting) because it is washable, but I think a cotton/linen blend would be even better.  I realized that the baskets I bought are not the best choice, so now the hunt begins… 

The Bread Basket Liner is a really fun knit and actually looks like woven fabric.  I will share a picture when it is done.  Hope you are enjoying the cooler weather — fall has definitely landed in Minnesota!

PS: purlgin mentioned a site called SERRV that sells fair trade handmade items from international artisans.  I bought three of these baskets and warmers!  They look perfect!  One is for me…

If necessity is the mother of invention, then sheer laziness must be the father!  I have always found that my ingenuity is spurred on by work avoidance.   This recent instance is one of my lazier better examples.

I just finished two Damson Shawlettes — one for a shop sample and one for the annual charity auction at my work. 

My original Damson, plus the two new, unblocked ones

For some reason, I thought it made sense to block them at the same time.  After all, I have two pieces of styrofoam for blocking and lots of pins.  The first one went okay — putzy and boring, but okay.  Then I started the second one.  I had run out of steam and it wasn’t shaping up very well.  I thought of just setting it aside for another day, but it was wet and I wanted it to be done. 

Then the ‘lazy lightbulb’ went on!!  The Damsons were made of the same type of yarn, same number of repeats, same size.  Would it work to just double them up and put the second Damson over the first and use the pins as pegs?  It worked like a charm and took a tenth of the time:

Here you can see the two stacked up:

Here are the Damson Twins after blocking:

Damson Modified in Malabrigo Sock “Abril”

Damson Modified in Malabrigo Sock “Rayon Vert”

As you can see, I used the open mesh modification for my Double Damsons, which I prefer.  I love this pattern and LOVE the mesh version.  I stopped a few rows early because of fear that I would run out of yarn, but I do think I could have gone the distance — I have a fair amount of yarn left over.  Ravelry Project Page.

So, this was a great and successful blocking solution 🙂 with very little application in other situations 🙁 .

PS: Rox mentioned a couple of possible applications: You could block sleeves this way, couldn’t you?  And maybe the back and front of a sweater, too? 

I always use blocking wires instead of pins to block sleeves and sweater pieces, but this might help those of you who use pins.  It will take longer to dry, but it might be worth it (?).

Alice, Alice, Alice.  Your genius overwhelms me, heartens me, and inspires me.  I have been enamored for decades and you continue to amaze!  Alice and Jade Starmore just announced their new website and it is a stunner.  They put forth their best efforts and created a much improved portal to their designs and yarns.

Both Sally and I have knit numerous Starmore designs.  Mine include:

Eala Bhan
Oregon
Henry the VIII
Erisort
Berry Tree
Rona
St. Brigid
Capillifolium Baby Cap
Kimberley (Jade)
Rambling Rose

Sally has made many of the above and several fair isle baby blankets (Cats and Mice Blanket).   We’re fans, what can I say?  We also have had the honor and privilege of meeting Alice, taking classes, and dining with her…the highlight of my [knitting] life.  Alice inspired me to attempt fair isle knitting with Rambling Rose and complex cables with St. Brigid.

The cool thing about the new website is that you can use a filter to find what you want.  When you sort by “Alice Starmore,” you get all of her designs on one page.  I was overwhelmed and overcome.  What a talent!!

I am sure there are more Starmores in my future.  I have yarn in stash and thoughts racing through my knitting addled brain.  All I can say is WOW!!!

Recently I referred to a project that I just couldn’t get finished – a smallish summer top that took me forever!  It is a cute design that takes:

This —

Plus this —

 and ends up with this:

I love my “Sweetheart Tunic,” but it is wool and not suited for summer wear.  I thought the same type of style would be nice in cotton.  The design is called Tabitha and the yarn it called for is Riveting (cute!), by Kollage (I used Night Denim). 

The yarn is actually made out of recycled blue jeans and has a very stiff, coarse feel, but I liked it.  It is T-I-N-Y (350 yds/100 gms) and therefore requires small needles.  And lots of knitting!  Add the fact that it is meant to shrink as denim does, and you need to knit a lot more to accommodate the shrinkage effect.  It is only supposed to shrink in length, but mine seemed to shrink in all directions. Put all those variables together and it took me quite a while to finish this one.

The above picture shows Tabitha before machine washing and drying.  It does get smoother and “firmer” with washing.  And the obligatory “Lettie wearing it on the deck” photo:

I wore it today and pretty much liked it.  Yay!!  Ravelry Project Link.

Call it a perfect day!! I went to the Minnesota State Fair today with a wonderful friend, and met others along the way: the weather was picture perfect and the logistics ideal.

The first day of the fair is when you get to see how well your knitting did in terms of ribbons, etc. I feel pretty good about it this year — always surprises (+ and -), but mostly pluses.

Every few years the people who do the displays decide to group things by “theme.” They did it again this year. 🙁 It throws everyone off — you can’t find anything! My friend and I kept saying, “They’ll NEVER find this sweater.”  So, we wandered from case to case trying to find our stuff.  Eventually we tracked evrything down but there is no way to describe it to others who may want to check out your items.

Lotus Flower did very well and is displayed right next to the gorgeous award winning quilts:

Eala Bhan, Let It Snow, my Double Heelix Socks also got blue ribbons.  My red Braided Glory and beaded  gloves received second place ribbons.  I also got ribbons for my Acanthus, Fiori di Sole, and pink silk  One Day Baby Hat. 

Great fun was seeing that knitting peep Jimmy (the one I spoke about last week) won a third place for his original design hooded sweater:

Even more fun was seeing that Sally’s Sleeping Baby’s Castle Blanket design was featured and won a ribbon:

Even one of my old designs was seen at the fair (Aubrey Cap):

The brown cabled hat is the Aubrey Cap

Anyway, it was a really fun day and I really enjoyed seeing the beautiful things people made.  And what fun eating lots of fair food!! 

This is just a quick post before heading to knitting night!

PS: Beverly said, “Congrats on your wins. I wish our fair was like yours. Here you can enter only one item in each category.”  That is true at our fair, too. Only one entry allowed per lot.

I’m off today on an unexpected, spontaneous trip to Colorado — I just decided to go on Thursday!  My daughter’s boyfriend is racing in the USA Pro Cycling Challenge, which features some of the world’s top pro cyclists including Cadel Evans and the Schleck brothers, the top three finishers in this year’s Tour de France.  This guy, however, is our big draw:

Nora and I will be driving all over Colorado to catch the various mountain stages; I’m really looking forward to seeing the cyclists race over the top of Independence Pass, which tops out at over 12,000 feet. The race will be televised on Versus in case any of you are secret bicycling fans or just like to watch fit men with great legs in tight spandex. Go Team Exergy and Matt Cooke!!!

I will, of course, bring along knitting. In addition to my Forest Path stole, I’ll be working on my own Summer Solstice cardigan. Susan liked hers so much, I was inspired to start one. I’m making it out of The Fibre Company’s Acadia, a wonderful yarn: 60% merino, 20% baby alpaca, and 20% silk. My colorway is Summersweet and I love it.

I haven’t knit enough to bother with a progress shot, but I hope to have a big chunk finished by the time I come back.

Fun, fun day!!  My knitting peeps and I went on a field trip today to introduce friend Jimmy to Lila and Claudine’s, historic Stillwater Minnesota, and The Dock Restaurant.  It was a beautiful day — we dined on the outdoor patio overlooking the breathtaking St. Croix River.  I bought this bit of bling at L&C’s for $10!!  I couldn’t make this bracelet for that.  It just sparkles in the sun.

Thanks for a perfect day!!

Sally has been working on some big projects, but some of mine have tended more toward instant gratification.  I knew the minute I saw Merope’s Cowl by Romi Hill that I would make it.  I love the large holes and pointy edges!   It is an extra addition to the 7 Small Shawls to Knit collection (which I highly recommend as a source of some stunning designs).  I used the yarn I bought recently: Maiden Hair.  It took far less than half the skein.

Lettie hates cowls — she claims they give her that crazy headless look!

Close up

I changed the start to 3×2 rib and then substituted a different lace pattern for the kitten paws — I have just done too many of those lately (Braided Glory x 2, Fylleryd).  I do love the holes 😉 .  I just hope it doesn’t look like a clown collar.  I think if it is worn under something and just the center shows it will be gorgeous. 

Next time I will share the project that will not end…

Linda asked a very good question about fiber: “Do you have any thoughts on fiber content?  I know wool is warmer, but some places want a fiber that can be washed easily.  I have also heard that washing is not a factor and go for the warmth factor.” 

I checked with the founders and they said that wool is preferred, washable wool is fine, and acrylic will not be turned away.  In other words, focus on the dark colors and plain styles rather than fiber.  I found some great wool in my stash so I will be starting a hat or two soon.  Thanks for the question, Linda!!