FO Friday #7

I did it! As I have the house to myself for 3 blissful days I sat down for a few hours this morning and finished my Rivoli shawl! When I cast on this pattern on 30th Dec 2013 I knew it would take me most of the year (if not longer) to complete and I was fine with that. It has been an incredibly satisfying knit and, while it's by no means perfect, it is glorious and I'm really pleased with it.

The pattern looks more complicated than it is and was fairly easy to knit. Admittedly I rarely did more than about 4 rows in one go as I did have to concentrate carefully on adding the beads and the lace pattern. The short rows seemed to take forever however, I was grateful to be casting off only 254 stitches instead of the 334 that I started with.

The yarn (Lotus Yarns Forest Dew Fingering Weight) is as soft as you would expect from a blend of 36% Angora, 30% Merino, 26% Tencel and 8% Cashmere. It was easy to knit with, if a little slippery at times and incredibly warm. There is a bit of a halo from the angora but not enough to obscure the lace or be too irritating if you don't like that sort of thing. My main worry is the strength of the yarn but as the shawl really won't get a great deal of wear it shouldn't be an issue. The beads add a little glimmer, a bit of weight and I also really like how they feel too.

I was nervous about the blocking of it as I've never blocked an angora blend but it seemed to wet block OK; I really won't know until I take it off the mat though. It's so difficult to get a good picture of it; hopefully my lovely husband will take a much better photo when he is back! 

I feel really good for finishing this and hope that the rest of the year continues in the same way! Have you finished any of your languishing projects from last year or perhaps cast on something new for 2015?

   

WIPs!

So it seems I have accumulated a lot of WIPs over the last few months! I have been putting off knitting some of them for no reason in particular and need to get cracking on them!

As you can probably tell the middle one is my cardigan, knitted from Inked Yarn in the Katharine base. As you can see I only have two sleeves and the back. I cast on the right front ages ago but didn't even get through the second row! Pathetic start I know but I confused myself over the twisted ribbing....it was early in the morning and I hadn't woken up yet! I have also been putting it off because I think I would like some sort of stitch pattern on the front and I need to swatch as I will probably use it all over the fronts. Perhaps this weekend I'll start doing that!

In the bottom left is the Seafoam Shawlette to Shrug that I am knitting for my step daughter. She picked out the yarn - an unknown brand and fiber content (probably acrylic) but it's quit pleasant to knit with. I haven't got very far as it doesn't need to be finished until Christmas and is not the most interesting of knits.

The Girasole in the top left corner of the photo is being knit out of 100% bamboo. It is my second time knitting the pattern and was initially intended for a friends new baby, but I didn't get it finished on time and knit a cardigan instead. This will be finished as it would be ideal as a lap blanket for when the air conditioning gets a bit chilly.

As you can see I haven't done any more work on the Rivoli Shawl. Since we moved it's been sat at the top of a wardrobe (along with most of the other knitting/spinning stuff that wasn't in shipping) waiting to be worked on again.

In the middle I have five spinning projects! Two of them I showed in my last post (alongside the sock I forgot to add to the above photo) and they are my current go to projects. The top one is some Baby Alpaca and Bunny Tops from Ixchel Bunny that I actually spun half of quite some time ago and have favoured other projects since. The middle spindle is some Nunoco that I started during the TdF and have no reason for not picking up since! Underneath that is some Ixchel Bunny Pure Luxury No. 5 that is lovely but challenging to spin.

So those are my WIPs....9 in total! I feel I need a plan of action to complete them all!

How many do you have at the moment? How do you plan to finish them when you have many outstanding?

P.S I've actually just realised I have a few other spinning WIPs tucked away...! I've wound some plying balls and just not started spinning the remaining fiber yet...whoops! Perhaps that's a post for another day?!?

 

Product or Process Knitter?

I've been thinking about this a bit recently as I've had limited knitting and spinning projects available to me, since all my stuff had to be packed up to be shipped to Jakarta. It also came up on episode 5 of the Stitched Together video podcast and I thought I'd talk a little about it here. 

When I've thought about this before I've wavered between the two and there are probably some times when I am both. Recently, however it's become pretty apparent that I'm mostly a process knitter. My Rivoli shawl and the Curious Collective Shawl have really proved that to me, as I have no reason whatsoever to be knitting shawls, but I want to for the sheer pleasure of doing so! I love to knit lace and really enjoy the challenge of it. Of course I love the finished products and I will keep them around when the air conditioning gets a bit chilly but if I don't enjoy knitting something then generally it either gets frogged or it takes an age.

My Custom Fit Cardigan will be lovely when it's done but that doesn't appear to be enough motivation to continue with it! The yarn is gorgeous and I really like the colour; yet it's sat untouched for weeks now! How do you motivate yourself to finish something you're not enjoying but know will be great when it's done?   

Hand knit socks do seem to be the anomaly though. I find them quite satisfying to have and to complete, yet they seem to take forever to knit and I enjoy the product more than the process in this case. 

Just for fun I've set up a little poll to find out how many of you are process or product knitters. If you'd like to share your thoughts in the comments then I'd love to hear them!

 

FO Friday #6

 




























It's been a while since I've had an FO and I'm really pleased to be showing it to you today. As was inevitable, I got bored of my current WIPs and have shamefully ignored my cardigan (and various other WIPs) in favour of something a little more interesting!

A few weeks ago I received some Juno Fibre Arts Alice in the Moss and Stone colourways. I bought it so I could knit the gorgeous 2014 Curious Collective Shawl. This is the first time that I've knit using the recommended yarn and that I've completed a KAL in the time frame and I'm so pleased with the result.

For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of the shawl check this blog post out for an explanation. I hadn't voted right at the beginning as I was late to the party, but did vote for a couple of aspects of the shawl. 

The pattern is very well written (and charted), with percentages alongside the pattern instructions so you can keep track of how far through you are, as well as allowing you to keep an eye on your yarn. I ended up with a shawl a bit smaller than the original but I'm OK with that. Potentially I could make another one with the left over yarn, but the opposite way round. 

The yarn, a delicious blend of 70% alpaca, 20% silk and 10% cashmere, was a sheer delight to knit with. It's so warm and has a slight halo about it from the alpaca but also has a little bit of sheen from the silk. It works so well with the pattern and since it's been blocked it's held it's shape well. I'm very sad that Juno Fibre Arts is closing as she is a very talented dyer. I'm sure the loss of her yarn will be felt by her fans. 

Of course it's far too warm to be wearing it here in Jakarta, unless the air conditioning is very chilly, so it will just look beautiful until I get a chance to wear it!

   

WIP Wednesday #2

Currently we're on our way back to Bangkok. We're taking the train, first class again, although it leaves at 21.04 so we won't get to see much scenery. Koh Samui has been wonderful and if we didn't need to get back to Bangkok then we'd definitely stay another week! We'll be applying for our Indonesian visas when we're there but have no idea at the moment how long that process takes. After that we're going to head to Singapore for a week or so! Needless to say I can't wait!

My biggest WIP at the moment is definitely my Custom Fit Cardigan. I swatched a while ago using some beautiful yarn from Inked Yarn that was custom dyed for me. It's a gorgeous blend of 55% BFL and 45% silk. My hope is that it is cool enough, due to the silk, to be worn in air conditioning. If not...well I'll most likely tolerate it anyway!! This is the third attempt at a cardigan for me, the first two were failures and frogged fairly early on in their short lives. Fingers crossed for this one please everyone!

So far I've done the back and one sleeve...not much considering I started it in May, but I'm cautiously knitting on my projects as I won't get my stash until about October. I have cast on the second sleeve but as I'm not in a hurry to finish it I've only done one row! Obviously the pieces haven't been blocked yet and won't be until I've finished all of them and am ready to seam. Although I've found some of the pattern a little challenging to get my head around I have enjoyed this so far. The pattern is very detailed and provides you with row counts for each section. I'm feeling hopeful that this will turn out well!

The other WIP that I have with me is my beaded shawl, Rivoli. It's a stunning beaded, lace shawl by Anniken Allis. I'm knitting it using Lotus Yarns Forest Dew in a light grey. To compliment the yarn I am using silver beads; subtle but absolutely gorgeous. 

While I was busy/tired/stressed during the last term of work the shawl was barely looked at, never mind knit on. However now that I have free time/have the mental energy/am relaxed I'm getting a few rows done a day. I've now completed 2 of the 4 repeats and am nearly finished with my 3rd. One more full repeat to go and then I get to the easy part! I've no idea where I think I'm going to be wearing a shawl made from a blend of angora, merino, tencel and cashmere in Indonesia but look at it....how could I resist?!

What have you been working on?

Two Weeks Left!

It's been far too long since I've posted - things have been hectic the last few weeks. The amount of socialising we have done is crazy! We leave China in two weeks and I have one week left at work. It's come around so incredibly quickly and I expect the next week to fly by even quicker than the previous weeks have! 

We have no definite plans for the holiday but we will head to Thailand and be there for four weeks. Then hopefully we'll have a week in Singapore before heading back to Bangkok to head to Jakarta on the 9th August. I'm really excited about our new adventure and hope that the blog will have more travel posts than I've been able to write this year. Our aim in Indonesia is to travel there as much as we can - we'll have a car so this will help greatly. 

I have enjoyed my time in China and it's been an incredibly valuable experience for us both. Leaving will be difficult as we've made some very good friends here and met some wonderful people. It is time to move on though and to begin a new adventure! 

As for knitting - I have an FO! It took a while but I have finished the Trillian I have knitted for a friend. I didn't massively enjoy the pattern as I found it quite boring but I like the FO and hope that my friend does too. The yarn (Juno Fibre Arts Milly Standard) was lovely to knit with however, I much prefer non superwash wools. The colour is gorgeous and the different tones make for a very interesting knitted object. 

Trillian in Juno Fibre Arts Milly Standard - Grape colourway

That's it from me for now. I hope to be back soon with more knitting and spinning. 

WIP Wednesday #1

As I've mentioned in the last couple of blog posts I've recently started knitting the Rivoli shawl. I thought that now would be a good time to show you as I've completed the first repeat and managed to take a photo where you can actually see the beads. 

The knitting is very simple but very effective. I am adding beads using the Fleegle Beader which I have found easy to use as well as considerably faster than using wire to add the beads, as I was doing before the beader arrived.  

The yarn is Lotus Yarn's Forest Dew in fingering weight, (it's a light fingering) and is gorgeous to knit with. It's a blend of angora, merino, tencel and cashmere, If you can try it, you should! 

One thought that has occurred to me is that the silver beads are perhaps too subtle but I hope that once it's finished they will stand out more. What do you think? Would you have used coloured beads? If so, what colour? 

What are you working on this week? Feel free to share in the comments section below! 

Normal Service Can Now Resume

It's New Year here now so happy year of the horse to you all! I hope that it is a great one. 

Because of the holiday I get a 10 day break, which I'm incredibly grateful for as the last couple of weeks have been manic and I haven't had a great deal of time to do what I want to do. 

Knitting has been quite minimal, as has spinning, but I do have an FO to share with you today.

I finished my handspun Gravitate shawl. I used my Inglenook Fibers Parrot Tulip yarn and I really like how it turned out. The colors aren't necessarily me and I think I prefer it in the skein but it is a fun shawl that brightens up the grey days here.

As I'd knit this previously it was quite quick. It's also (I think) mistake free which is probably a first for me! The colours and textures are highlighted quite well in the shawl and I'm pleased with the combination of pattern and yarn. 

 You can see here that the yarn has lots of neps and different colors. I really like the white against the orange and the odd bits of sparkle. 

As you may be able to tell I didn't use all of my yarn and could probably have worked the pattern so that I did. I'm OK with this as I was ready to be finished with the shawl. 

I am working on the Rivoli Shawl and have nearly finished the first pattern repeat. It's taking quite some time for each row as there are about 360 stitches on the needles plus the beads. It's not a complex pattern although does require my full concentration. Any photos I take don't seem to capture how beautiful it is so I'll leave photos until I have more done, in the hope that I will be able to capture it's elegance better. 

As for spinning, I'm working on some stunning Ixchel Bunny Pure Luxury No 5. It's a blend of yak, cashmere, tencell, bison and angora. It's a tricky fiber to spin as it's so slippery but spinning from the fold really helps keep it under control. It's stunning as it is and I'm positive that the results will be even more beautiful. If you haven't tried Charly's fiber then you absolutely should! 

That's all for this week. I hope that normal blogging will resume from now on as I will have more time to knit and spin! 

To the Frog Pond

The first couple of weeks back at work after the holidays have been exceptionally busy so please excuse my absence. I've knitted and spun here and there but have still got a few things to show you.  

So...as you know I've been knitting the Vertex Cardigan for a while now and I haven't gotten a huge amount done. I tried it on the other day, with a knitting friend, to ask her opinion about the armholes because I think they are HUGE! She confirmed my fears and agreed that I would end up with a lot of fabric under the arms if I knitted them this way. Due to this fact, and the many errors that I've already made in the knitting, I've decided to frog the cardigan. What a relief! 

Instead I am thinking of using the CustomFit website to design a cardigan of my own. I would really love to hear your opinions if you've used CustomFit. 

After knitting the Gravitate shawl for my friend I decided I wanted one but knit with my handspun. I cast on a couple of weeks ago but haven't got much done. I really like how my Inglenook Fibers Parrot Tulip yarn is knitting up. It's not consistently spun but the garter stitch mostly evens it out. 

During the holidays my husband and I went to Shanghai so I made a point of going to a bead shop as I was eager to try knitting with beads. I bought some seed beads in pink, emerald and silver. I then cast on the Rivoli Shawl using Forest Dew by Lotus Yarns and my silver beads. Currently I'm using picture hanging wire to thread the beads on but do have 2 Fleegle Beaders on their way to me, that I hope to receive this week. The shawl is really easy to knit with the help of eleventy billion stitch markers between each repeat! 

On a different note, Chinese New Year is approaching here so the school I work at put on a traditional Chinese dragon and lion dance and drum performance. It's the first time I've seen one and it was great fun. Take a look at some of the pictures! 

That's it from me this week. I will be back next week with some more knitting and spinning. Have a great week! 

FO Friday #3

It's been a few weeks since I've had anything finished and been able to blog on a Friday. 

It's the holidays though so there is no stopping me! I've been knitting like a maniac to get this shawl finished so I can block it ready to gift on Christmas Day. It's finally off the needles and I'm so relieved! 

The pattern is Gravitate by KallioKnits. It's really well written, very simple to follow and knit. Great for those times when you want something fairly mindless...just watch those double yarn over rows! 

The yarn is Fyberspates Rural Charm in the Plum colourway. It's a delight to work with and lovely and soft. The silk gives it a really lovely sheen and I hope that the BFL will minimise pilling. This is it pre-blocking and I hope it grows.  

That's all I'll show you for today. I hope you're enjoying the festive season. I will be spending tomorrow making some pastry for mince pies! 

 

Time to Rest

After a hectic term, it is now the Christmas holidays! I have time to knit and spin and blog and rest! Hooray! I apologise for my absence but things have been crazy!

I have been knitting and spinning but will only show a few things today and save the rest for over the holidays. The main thing I have been working on is the Gravitate shawl. It's coming along well and I'm now on the penultimate section. I really like how the double yarn overs look dropped and can't wait to see what this shawl looks like blocked. The pattern is so clear and exceptionally easy to follow. 

The other thing that I have been trying to finish is some spinning. My Inglenook Fibers Parrot Tulip has been hibernating for some time. I really enjoyed this batt at first but after a while I found it really difficult to spin as it's not a smooth batt. The last part took me months to spin but I'm pleased to say it's finished and I love the end product.

The colours are wonderful and they work beautifully together. This is also some of the more consistent spinning I've done and I'm surprised at how evenly it plied up, considering I navajo plied it. It's 435 yards, which I'm thrilled with. I can't decide what it will become but I'm tempted to knit a shawl from it. What do you think it should be?

Shortly after calculating the yardage for this, I realised that I must have calculated the yardage for my Nunoco Iridescent Puddle yarn incorrectly. I went back and double checked the calculation and it turned out that I hadn't doubled it to compensate for only measuring half the length of the skein. So that's actually 472 yards - my best spinning yet. 

Recently I bought my first craftsy.com class - Spinning Dyed Fibers by Felicia Lo. I've been hankering after it for quite some time and the price was too good to pass up. I watched all of it in one weekend and it was so immensely interesting that I was disappointed when it finished. There is definitely a lot of information in there that I will use again in the future. Which craftsy.com classes do you like? 

Fractal spinning is something I've wanted to try for a while as I love the way the yarn looks, however I'm not so sure I like the knitted items. A while back I received a Phat Fiber box with lots of delicious samples in it. One of these is perfect for fractal spinning. I will finish spinning and knit up a sample to show you soon. The picture shows the second half of the fiber divided into 3. 

That's all for now - I will be back soon though.

 

Perfect Weather for Knitting

The time has arrived in Suzhou where snuggling up with a hot chocolate and some knitting is the perfect evening activity - although in my book that's OK in summer too! Today has been cold, grey and damp so you'll have to make do with indoor photos taken in rubbish light. Sorry about that! 

Remember that little lacy something I was working on from this blog post? Well that didn't last long! It was going to be a Sacha shawl but my brain wasn't coping with the lace. It's something I have knit before but I'm just too busy/tired to set aside the time needed for it. So I frogged this gorgeous yarn for what seemed like the umpteenth time and started accepting that I might never find a perfect pattern for it. Until I stumbled upon Gravitate by KallioKnits. It's easy, simple and I think quite elegant. This is destined for a very good friend of mine and I hope she likes it as much as I think I'm going to! 

Gravitate Shawl, Fyberspates Rural Charm 

My socks have seen a little daylight although not much since I last posted. It's enough to see how the stripes will knit up and I like them very much. 

Fish Lips Kiss Heel sock, Fishknits Yarn

Over the last month I've been challenging myself to spin a 4oz batt before the 30th November. I've completed the first 50g. While I've started the second 50g, I doubt I will have time to complete it. It's looking lovely so far though. The batt is Hummingbird by Nunoco. Don't you love the sparkles in it?!  

Hummingbird Batt, Nunoco

My Vertex cardigan is coming along. I have joined the fronts to the back and have knit about an inch and a half more. Thankfully, the rolling of the stockinette stitch hides my glaring error. Despite having stitch markers to mark the edges, I'm still going through periods where I'm knitting stockinette stitch and not garter stitch. Quite frankly, I can't be bothered to rip back the 5 or 6 rows to fix it, and while I realise I could also try and drop down the stitches to fix them, I'm reluctant to, as the yarn isn't the easiest to work with. So I'm living with it as a design feature. I think this will be a cute cardigan when it's done but I'm not massively enjoying the knitting of it. 

Vertex Cardigan, King Cole Merino Blend 4 ply

I hope you've had a productive fiber filled week. Until soon! 

 

The Socks of Happiness

I finished my Fish Lips Kiss Heel socks tonight and I am thrilled  with them! They are just so much fun that I actually squealed with delight when I put them on and saw how they looked as a complete pair. The heel looks so neat and was very easy to knit. I highly recommend the pattern to anyone wanting to try a new heel. 

I used the magic knot technique to join my yarn to create the stripes and although it has worked out fine I probably wouldn't choose to do this again as it really was a hassle. I will also think about knitting a longer cuff for my following socks, so far they seem to stay up fine though. I used twisted 1x1 rib and really like the way it looks on the colour change. 

Self striping socks are definitely next on my list to knit but do I go plain vanilla or patterned? If patterned, what patterns work well with self striping? I would love to hear your suggestions. 

In other news I have cast on another attempt at the Vertex Cardigan by Carol Feller as I received a 500g cone of yarn earlier this week. My swatch came out at the exact stitch gauge so fingers crossed it will work up OK! I am knitting it out of King Cole Merino Blend 4 Ply in the kingfisher colourway. The colour is beautiful and I've been wanting to add more colour to my wardrobe for a while. Wish my luck! It will be my first adult sized garment. 

As I said last week I cheated on my socks with a lacy shawl. I've not knit much more than 2 repeats of the first chart though. There are only 8 rows in each repeat and I have less than 60 stitches on my needle so very little progress has been made on it!! It's the pattern Sacha by Vanessa Smith which I've knit before. The lace is quite a challenge in that there isn't really an obvious pattern so you need to concentrate on it and that doesn't happen for me during the school week. I'm using Fyberspates Rural Charm in the plum colourway. This will eventually be a gift for a very good friend. As I've mentioned on the blog before, the yarn is amazing to knit with and definitely worth checking out.  

That's it for this week. Remember to check out the giveaway if you haven't already! 

A Little Lace Relief

Dear stripy pink and yellow socks,

Your fabulous colours make me so happy and I am so looking forward to wearing you when the weather is cooler. I am tickled by your colour changes and you fit so wonderfully. 

For now though, I'm sorry to say but I'm bored of you. I need a change. It's not you, it's me. I thought that endless miles of stockinette that alternated pink and yellow could keep me amused for hours and hours. I was wrong. I'm cheating on you with a flirty lace shawl. This isn't the end, I will be back. But for now, I need a little lace relief. 

Yours,
Knitiot

P.S Don't forget to enter the giveaway!

Finished Object!

I finished my Belgian Waffle Boomerang earlier this week and got around to photographing it earlier this week. The pattern was very clear and easy to knit but it did get a little repetitive after a while. I like the finished object and as it's knit from Fyberspates Faery Wings it will be very cozy to wear. 

In other crafting news I have completed the heel of my socks and thought the Fish Lips Kiss Heel pattern was excellent. The heels fit perfectly, look so neat and were very easy to knit. I highly recommend buying the pattern if you haven't got it already. Don't these socks make you so happy?!

Wanting some (almost) instant gratification I cast on the Barley hat by Tin Can Knits. I knit twisted rib instead of regular though and moss stitch instead of garter. It was quick and I finished it in a few days, photos to come when it stops raining! I really like the way it fits and the pattern is very simple. It's great for some mindless knitting or if you are a beginner knitter! 

I received an incredibly generous gift from a friend. It's approximately 1kg of gorgeous, soft 60%/40% alpaca/wool blend lace weight yarn. I have no idea what the yardage is but I expect it's a lot! Half is an oaty colour and the other half is a soft grey colour. I am going to swatch for Bonny but with the yarn held doubled. Perhaps I'll experiment again (with my swatch first) with dyeing when I have finished the knitting! What are your favourite lace weight patterns? 

Progress is Being Made

The Blog Hub Blog Hop is on Wednesday has now been extended to Friday and I have been working mainly on those projects. 

Good news - I finished the socks!! I have washed them and am waiting to give them to the recipient so I can take a photo of her wearing them...if she'll let me! 

Unfortunately I am still only about half way through my Belgian Waffle Shawl. I thought it'd be much quicker than it is turning out to be. Although I will continue to work on it I doubt I'll get it done by Wednesday. 

I am still spinning the nunoco batt and have got about an ounce on my spindle. That will come off soon and I will start the next ounce. 

Today though, I decided to ply the 2 ounces of Inglenook Fibers that I spun up over summer. I couldn't get the peacock feathers to ply into it so will knit those in when I knit with the yarn. It's currently drying in the sunshine so I have no idea of the yardage yet. Overall I think it came out OK. The second ounce is much more consistently spun and finer than the first ounce. 

I'm not that fond of the dark blue skein which is just as well as I have it earmarked for a project for someone who does like blue. The bottom skein is more my colours but I'm not in love with it so I'll probably destash the remaining fiber to someone who will give it the love and attention it deserves. It is really very soft though and I'm sure I'll enjoy knitting with it. 

Now I can start the next pair of socks using the Fish Lips Kiss Heel. The socks are going to be pink and yellow, have contrasting heel and toes in opposite colours and will most likely have a diamond pattern on the front of the foot and up the leg. I can't wait!! 

I will definitely use the 2 at a time, toe up method again as it was such a relief to have them both finished at the same time!

What projects have you been working on?  

All The Things

This week has been exceptionally busy due to the start of school coming so knitting and spinning time has been sparse. The kids are in on Wednesday and my body is not cooperating as I am coming down with a cold. Perhaps I will use this as an excuse to knit and spin as much as I can!? 

First up, pictures of the Low Tide Cardigan by Tin Can Knits. I gifted this to the recipient yesterday and although it is a bit big at the moment by the time it cools down it should be a great fit. I am really looking forward to seeing it being worn.  

Next up socks! I am trying to stash bust a bit at the moment as, for some reason, I want to buy all the things!! I started knitting Spice Man socks using some now discontinued 100% merino sock yarn in the Parrot colourway. The pattern is easy to follow and I have just started the gusset and hope to finish it soon. As you can see I'm knitting them two at a time, toe up, on one circular needle. This is my first time using this technique and although it was fiddly to start with I really like it now. The needles are Dyakcraft Heavy Metals which I am in love with and as a sock needle I think they are ideal. 

New on the needles is a Belgian Waffle Boomerang by Susan Ashcroft. It's a really well written pattern and very easy to follow. I am using one of the recommended yarns, which rarely happens, Fyberspates Faery Wings on my 5mm Darn Pretty Interchangeable Needles. The yarn is simply gorgeous to knit with and feels very luxurious. I am sure this will be a pleasure to wear through the winter months here. This is my favourite shape of shawls so any recommendations of patterns are appreciated. 

                                  

As I said last week I was keen to try spinning with rolags. I picked out a lovely sample from my Secret Garden Phat Fiber box and away I went. I believe the fiber is from Woodland Hills Alpacas and it spun up into a beautiful little skein. A blending board is definitely in my future but perhaps I will have to suffice with buying rolags for the time being. Where do you like to buy yours from?  

On my spindle at the moment is a Nunoco batt. The colourway is Iridescent Puddle which is a gradient that goes from  purple, to green and then jade. I started at the jade end and am almost at the end of the purple of the first 50g. I want this to match up as much as possible so will two ply it. I have 200g in total so hopefully I can knit something gorgeous at the end. 

   

On a more technical note, I have recently purchased Knit Companion as it is currently on sale. Has anyone used it? Do you have any hints or tips? Do you like it? I will hopefully start using it soon but am keen to hear your thoughts on it in the meantime.  

Have a great weekend!