just another raveller

Here's how things looked (and how I felt) leaving for work this Friday morning: And here is how things looked in the afternoon: As for kntting, I haven't done much this week. I am still finishing the fronts of the North Sea Jacket. Gonna go work on it now. Meanwhile I couldn't resist swatching the Koigu I bought last week...

These little crocuses will need to survive 22 F (-6 C) tonight. Wish them luck. Meanwhile, here's the beginning of a cotton jacket. The yarn is Jo Sharp Soho Summer DK cotton knit on 3.5 mm needles. This jacket starts with a seed stitch border followed by Herringbone Lace stitch (Barbara Abbey ). My gauge for the Herringbone was about 5.3 stitches per inch. After about 3-3.5 inches, I switched to another 6 stitch repeat: the Seaweed pattern from Barbara Walker's Second Treasury . I'm getting 6 stitches per inch with this pattern. This change in gauge makes a nice transition at the hips and helps create the illusion of shaping. I first knit this jacket, of my own design, several years ago, but yarn was variegated and so the full effect of the textured stitch patterns was lost. It's on my Ravelry page as the Venice Jacket . I'm making some mods here and have renamed it The North Sea jacket. I really like the way one stitch pattern blends into the other.

It's hard to believe that the weather can go on being so foul for so many days. The Grey Amusement is done and keeping me cosy. Feels like an electric blanket turned on low over the legs. Just the thing. Since I'm afraid I'd be contributing to the general ill health of the population if I posted yet another grey photo without something bright to counter it, here's a lurid shot of a Sally Ann blankie over a chair in the dining room, followed by one of the Amusement. I've started a cotton jacket for Spring but it's mud coloured. I was planning on posting a photo of the 7 pretty skeins of Koigu that I bought at KnitnPurl yesterday (30% off all yarn!) but sorry, this is all I'm up to tonight. Memo to self: keep a few more bright photos on hand for low moments.

You can see how much snow fell here on the weekend. Not as much as some places, but enough to make it an event. I'm loving this blanket more every day. I covers my feet now. I switched to the Dark Charcoal Mohair stranded with the lighter grey alpaca/wool mix for the outer border and edging: I knit the Sharon Miller's Double Scallop edging on one end, picking up one stitch of the border for every two rows of edging. It felt very heavy, maybe too much, so I blocked it to see if I'd have to frog it and do it over. I think this turned out nicely and now I'm really looking forward to the finished project. Not just any home-made blankie, this: Confession...I ran out of the light grey yarn just before the beginning of the final edging so I frogged another project to recoup some of the yarn top use here! This is an old lap robe that I knit a couple of years ago for my chair at the office. I didn't know that I was capable of doing these wonderful lace patterns back then. I ...

As my husband says, it's hard to take three seasons in the same week. On Saturday we were skiing in the woods. Just beautiful: On Sunday, I made a snowman... On on Monday, the snowman was no more (this scarf is on the way to being felted into a bag) On Monday, after work, we walked around the reservoir with some half dressed joggers... Today, Tuesday, the weather is simply unspeakable: freezing rain, sleet and wind. Let's talk about something else. The Grey Amusement continues to amuse. I ran out of the Extra Fine Mohair (grey) and cadged 2 skeins of Extra Fine Mohair (dark charcoal) from the elusive MsMead who, if she ever posts any photos of her truly fine shawls, will be immediately promoted to knitters' heaven due to both her generosity and her excellent stitchery. In any case, the Grey Amusement is beginning to look quite natty as I am onto the Herringbone Lace stitch (Barbara Abby) edging in this darker shade. I'll take a new photo when the weather cheers up.