by Kat | Jan 12, 2018 | General
Despite temps that reached the 70’s with the sun out yesterday, Treysta got her debut yesterday and, oh my, I just LOVE her!
Hindsight in knitting, I should have gone down once size I think, but it fits and is incredibly comfortable! Treysta is a well-written pattern with excellent directions on yarn dominance and how to carry three colors in the few rows where three colors are worked at the same time.
I did some minor modifications to the pattern: no ribbing at the cuffs or at the bottom of the sweater, but rather I did the rolled edge like the neckline and the fit is much better. I did 4 rows of stockinette with a smaller needle on the sleeves and 6 rows with the same size needle on the bottom hem. No other changes were made at all. This is my first FO of 2018 and I could not be happier with it. My love of Lettlopi grows, it absolutely knits into the most wonderful fabric!
My sweater knitting is not yet over and I am cruising along on my Stopover! I am through the waist shaping and will likely start the sleeves this weekend. I had forgotten what a quick knit this is and this will easily be done this month!
Now, how about some links!
I Knit New York has some fantastic knits in it! And, if you head over to those crazy girls at Mason Dixon, Jane Jacobs is free for a limited time!
JumperCables released Mock Rib Cowl which is on sale right now!
Mary and Vicki are leading a little KAL with the Parallelogram Scarf and there is still time to join in!
This January thaw is nice, but I promise that winter is far from over…Narwhal and Fossil (and the pattern is free!)
BT Winter 18 has some lovely knits!
And, finally, a pattern I have been stalking all week! September House by Kirsten Kapur. I really love it!
Have an amazing weekend stay warm and dry! See you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Jan 5, 2018 | General
I have been slowly plugging away at my Treysta, and Sleeve No. One is almost done! Sleeve No. Two should go faster, because I was smart and kept track of all my rows! Maybe by this time next week, a new sweater will be born!
I am glad it is the weekend and a bit of persistence will pay off there too! I got a new Lidia cookbook for Christmas and there is a cocktail (or ten) in there with my name on it. Perhaps a bit of a weekend celebration do-over is in order!
Now, how about some links to get the weekend started?
Shaila mittens were released last September but the pattern was not available for download until this week. Included is an excellent video on yarn dominance, in case you want to do some stranded knitting this year!
Staying in the stranded knitting theme, Setesdalish… oh my gosh!
Or, perhaps Vintersol
All of these are truly wonderful examples of stranded knitting!
Not up for stranded knitting? Perhaps just knitting a sweater is on your list this year. Both Margene and Mary give rave reviews for sweaters designed by Elizabeth Doherty and she has a new pattern out: Archer, knit with The Woolen Rabbit Airy.
Kate Davies also has a new pattern out today: Carbeth I love the simple lines of this sweater and the construction!
And, finally, PBSNewsHour is joining forces with the NYT’s and together they have started Now Read This! The first book is one that deeply moved me last year, Jesmyn Ward’s Sing, Unburied, Sing. At the end of the month there will be a Q&A with her! This should be so much fun!
That is all I have for this first Friday in January! Stay warm this weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Dec 22, 2017 | General
Yesterday, I began my new stitching project and I am so excited about it, I had to share my humble beginnings with you all! I am happy to report that couching with hand spun yarn is the way to go!! And, I am maintaining my entirely “free stitching” and I used no tracing or no marking.
And, so Welcome to Winter! I have 88 more days to stitch and I am excited for each and every one of them!
Are any of you going to start a stitching project (or any project, really… I have semi-seriously been pondering this cowl) AND, there are some who talked about starting a Woman Must Make Her Own Arrows in January too! I thought it might be nice to have a little support group to cheer each other on. If you want to start a Year of Stitching and you don’t know how to begin, email me (kachrist37 (at) gmail (dot) com) and I would be happy to help you get started! If you are interested in a little group support for a year long project, leave a comment here and I will start an email thread of where to do that easily.
Now, how about some links?
Gentle Morning
I love the story behind this hat
A Lacy Boxy with heart
More good cause knitting, Girlfriendscardigan Anke
That is all I have for the Friday before Christmas. Go out and make some merry today! Have a great weekend! I am debating about a post on Monday but, I want to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas!
by Kat | Dec 15, 2017 | General
I have been doing some super-secret knitting during the day which I can’t tell you all about or show you just yet, but I am making some good progress. This has been assisted greatly by audiobooks (I am almost done with Bonfire) and Season 2 of The Crown on Netflix, which I finished yesterday.
I am anticipating this super-secret knitting to be completed today, which will allow me to BREATHE a deep sigh of relief!
I am also anticipating the 2018 Read Harder Challenge, which I am going to participate in next year. I have also been contemplating my Goodreads book challenge this year – do I play it safe or really push myself this year? Perhaps with the Net Neutrality debacle, reading might be more important next year as streaming Netflix might be limited. I am leaning towards pushing myself.
AND, as you can see, I am really ready for some Christmas Break Reading. The Library is being SUPER good to me right now and has somehow moved me up on my “hold list” almost to the GAH point! I checked out the above books on Tuesday night, and last night Killers of the Flower Moon was downloaded to my iPad. With these additions, it almost feels like I can make that 85-books-read mark!
But, how about some links:
First up, staying with the reading theme:
I laughed at this Hogwarts House Quiz (I got Slytherins and loved that I have read most of the books on the House Slytherin list)
I also loved the 100 Must-Read Books with One-Word Titles. I added quite a few to my read list!
Are you a mystery series lover? 25 Of The Absolute Best Cozy Mystery Series
Also, FYI: You can now follow hashtags on IG…
And, finally the knitting links:
Playtime
Sankta Lucia Socks
Little Knots Cardigan… LOVE!
Is 2018 you Year of Knitting? Big Sky Weather Scarf This could be an excellent stash buster as well!
Pine Burr I am not sure if it’s the color (which is divine!) or the stitch pattern but, I love this cowl!
Bittersweet Oh, my. I love the texture. Will 2018 be the year I finally tackle texture?
And, Kate Atherley’s Rosetta Tharpe is FREE until midnight December 17th in honor of the induction of Ms. Tharpe to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
That is all I have for this week! Have a great weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
by Kat | Nov 24, 2017 | General
I have to say, I really love long weekends that begin on Wednesday night and are filled with good food and even better company! This is that sort of weekend and while we will head out to participate in the rush of shopping, it won’t be the focus of the day.
Here is your reality check for the weekend though… there are only 30 days until Christmas so if you have any gift knitting to do that you have not started yet…stop reading this and go cast on! There might be a project or two in the links that will work in the time you have left, just sayin’…
There are some awesome sales going on in the fiber world, though.
Perhaps a couple of grab bags from Amy at Spunky Eclectic… she has one with yarn like this grab bag for instance, or she has some awesome grab bags for hand spinners like this, or this, or even this! And, her sale does not end there! She has spinning wheels on sale, and weaving looms like this awesome Schacht Flip rigid heddle or this Wolf Pup.
Also, don’t forget that Beth Smith has a giveaway going on for a free kit for her Spin & Weave Along!
Now, how about some links (or perhaps more links is more correct!)
Mary pointed Humulus out to me on Instagram the other day… Yeah, I love it!
I don’t know about you, but stranded knitting just seems to go faster than “regular” knitting. So, perhaps you can get these mittens done in time for Christmas and maybe these mitts too!
I have yet to jump on the Brioche bandwagon, but this hat might be the thing that makes me jump!
Duo Chrome… a sweater for Big people and Little people! And, you could knit this with the helical striping technique!
This sweater, love it!
Noux… so many good sweaters!
And, finally, I will do the tiniest bit of self-promotion, so please forgive me but I have a bit of a Black Friday Sale going on in my Lipsburgh Facebook Group. I have the product in stock and I’d be happy to help you pick the perfect LipSense™ color. I would love you to join me there!
Have a great weekend… AND, this is the last weekend of NaBloPoMo, so I will see you back here tomorrow!
