just another raveller

The book : Mosaic Knitting by Barbara Walker. A stitch dictionary of charted designs for mosaic knitting . I have only used this technique in small projects such as little bags to carry things inside another bag, ipod cases, glasses cases, etc. You could knit a variety of squares and sew them together. The yarn : Berocco Seduce . 4% Rayon, 25% Linen, 17% Silk, 11% Nylon. A stiff and shiny yarn with no memory. I looked at it for months before biuying 2 skeins to try it out. It's kind of like knitting with a stiff flax. The needles: 2mm / zero US. Warning: knitting stiff yarn with small needles can result in a headache, but otherwise, the result is good. There must be some yoga exercise for this. I was warned that this yarn could be frustrating because it doesn't wind well and won't stay in a ball. I don't remember where I saw this in practice, but it came to mind that capturing the balls of yarn immediately after winding in footlets would work and did it ever! It's ...

I've finished the Garter Stitch Catharina II and blocked it. I'll put it away until I find the right someone who can wear this strange clay/pink/purple colour. I could in a pinch. I just love this pattern and will probably knit it again. The garter stitch really shows off the yarn quality. I'd knit it again. Doesn't it look like it should be slithering along the ocean floor? I've been sticking to my plan and just today finished re-knitting the back of the Noro Swing Jacket. After this, I think I'll get on to small projects and swatches for a while. It's taken a lot of discipline not to get sidetracked. I'll post about my swing jacket modifications in a few days.

I'm still plugging away at the Swing Jacket and the GS Catharina shawl, both of which I had expected to be finished with by now. I've re-knit the two fronts of the jacket and cast on for the back, finally. I managed this while waiting at the the Waterloo Outlets . I had 1.5 hours of straight knitting, surrounded by serious consumers, many shopping for back to school items. A band struck up, playing Beatles tunes for the shoppers. And there I was in blue jeans, wearing that blue mesh summer top that I knit earlier this month and a wide brimmed hat. Even my knitting was blue. Felt like a prop for the band. Hmmph. Here's the beginning of the end of the GS Catharina shawl - finally the edging has begun! Thanks, Ms Marty. I keep trying to make it to the Seward House there, but I always get distracted along the route and run out of time. Yesterday, we walked on the wonderful pier. Is there a yarn shop in Auburn? Talk about yarn shops, I recently heard that there's a new shop...

With the excuse of signing up for a bus trip to Rhinebeck, I made a trip to the LYS yesterday, specifically to Yarn Boutique . Really, I was only trying to console myself about having to unravel the three pieces of the Noro Swing Jacket. I looked at patterns. I admired a great deal of yarn. In the end I held off buying the yarn and bought two Berocco booklets, no. 288 and no 298. I'm not the type to spend $9.50 per skein, unless it's something very special. I decided to look in my stash to see if there is anything I could use to make Reid in place of the 9 skeins of Blackstone Tweed called for by the pattern. I have 9 skeins of Fibra Natura Heaven purchased at Mouline this summer. Hmmm. There might not be enough yarn considering the gauge is smaller than the Blackstone tweed. Tempting though...I could end up with a worse problem than I'm having with the Noro. Must dig deeper into the stash. In my typically disciplined way (ha ha), I re-started the Swing Jacket after ret...

This is about the time when it hits children that the summer is coming to an end and that school is about to start again. It's a special time of year, either sad or happy, depending on how you feel about school. The feeling can last for life, resurfacing each year around this time. Frankly, I had mixed feelings about school - I cycled between dread and happy anticipation. Come mid August, my garden looks more grey than green to my eyes, a little deflated, but there are still some striking blooms, and there are scads of tomatoes and cucumbers on the vine. Time to make gazpacho. In knitting, I have been alternating between 2 projects, a second Garter Stitch Catharina and a second Noro Swing Jacket. The GS Catharina is almost finished and looking like it's supposed to look. The Noro Swing Jacket has me sweating bullets, however. I can't believe that I've been stitching so mindlessly! I knit the two fronts and the entire back in the largest size with Noro Retro. It's ...

After my week in Wakefield, I tottered off to Montreal and situated myself on this garden swing. My entire vacation was punctuated by visits to yarn shops and knitters. You know the kind of thing - you tell yourself that you're only on the look out for yarn which comes from the vicinity in which you find yourself. Kind of like beer drinkers, I imagine. Either you get carried away or you don't. In Ottawa, I bought 7 skeins Diamond Yarns Luxury Collection Zen (Soy/Bamboo/Cotton) at KnitKnackers on Bank Street, enough to make this summer top. This is the first thing that I've knit for myself since February. I liked knitting with this yarn. I am amazed that it isn't heavy feeling like so many Bamboo yarns are. Also, the price was right - $4.99 per skein. In case you are wondering, I knit this sideways - stocking stitch with lace insertion on the miccle front and under the arms. Shaping only for the neck. Finished with I-Cord knit on to smooth the edges. I'm glad that ...

I'm in Wakefield, Quebec this week, knitting by the Gatineau River. The river is slow this year. Held up at the dam upstream for some purpose or other. The reduced current makes it easier to swim, but reedy in places. When the wind is still, the water is like a mirror. Yesterday morning, I got up early and went canoeing with my sister Frances. She let me sit in the front of the canoe. Here's how the water looked rowing to the northwest, toward town at about 8 a.m. And here's what it looked like rowing to the south east, towards the sun. In knitting, I am working on 2 projects. Here's the beginning of a Garter Stich Catharina from Stahman's Scarves and Shawls. I also have the hazy beginnings of a new summer top which is not yet worth showing. Mary Lou, the Wakefield Bakery is still in existence, though I understand from the locals that it caters mostly to the people who come for the day on the steam train up from Hull. The really good bakery is Pipolinka around the ...