Finished! twilight stole

I smell like a chimpanzee in an unkempt zoo and I've got a kitchen full of dirty dishes but instead of bathing myself or anything else, I had to dash outside and take pictures of this:



Dusk is approaching, and though I've never tried photographing in the early evening light, I thought it appropriate for something named "Twilight."



I am in love with this project. A little soak in lavender Eucalan did wonders for this yarn. It's still sticky and wooly, but blocking gave the yarn halo and depth.



Pattern: Twilight from A Fine Fleece. The pattern is so incredibly simple, yet so beautiful. Very, very easy, but as long as I was watching TV (or sometimes the kids, when they were playing nicely without interference, which does happen, if rarely) I never got bored. Probably because I love the yarn so much...
Yarn: unnamed shetland fingering weight, a vintage family heirloom. I never knew my mom's cousin Ruthie (the original owner), but I could feel that it was special as I was knitting it. It's heathery and warm and light as air. I don't know if this yarn is even considered "good" quality, actually. Sometimes it got so thin I was afraid it would break, and there were a few sections that seemed barely spun, just wisps of fleece. But I don't care. This object will be treated with care.
Needles: size 6 Addi Turbo Lace. Totally worth the money, which, by the way, I would not say about regular Addis.
Made for: Either my mom or one of her twin sisters. I have more of this shetland yarn, in 3 other colors. So I'm going to make a project out of each and then decide which one befits whom the best. Or let them choose. I'm not sure. (And yes, I can do the math. That's four projects for three women. I might keep the extra one. Or find someone else in the family who would like it.)

Dudes, I've been bitten by the lace bug. I can't wait to start the next one. You'll have to keep reading to find out what that's going to be!

it's about time

don't have a good title for this one

To nap or not to nap? To use the potty or not to use the potty? These are the questions. In fact, nearly everything about parenting is frustrating and exhausting these days, but I'm trying really really hard to keep my own complaining more or less confined to people who care (mainly my mom and my husband -- they are both very sympathetic). I desperately wish I had some time to myself. I could use a whole day in the house sans kids to do some serious cleaning/reorganizing/purging-of-excess-crap. I wish I had a little time every day for uninterrupted (that's the key word) creativity. Imagine if I could get through a whole blog post - or even a whole paragraph - without yelling "Stop pulling on your sister's leg! Don't spit on the floor! Don't throw that! STOP DOING THAT RIGHT NOW!!!" Sigh. I guess I'll just deal.

Fortunately, knitting is a good off-and-on sort of activity. Look what I just finished!



That blob up there is the twilight stole unblocked. I finished casting off at 5:30 this morning when Anya got up. I'll have to take a proper portrait after I finish weaving in the ends and block the thing.

this is a little harder than i thought

FREE YARN!! ACT NOW!! CLICK HERE FOR WEB EXCLUSIVE!!!

It's time for a bit of de-stashing here on Mad Knitting. Emphasis on "a bit" because while I know I have more yarn than I can use up in the next two years, and while I know it would be a relief if I could pare it down now...I have found that it's hard to part with this stuff! I'll pick up a ball (or four) of something I bought two years ago thinking it would be a sweater for Daniel, realize it's never gonna happen, then think "Oh! This would make a lovely scarf for so-and-so someday. I can't get rid of it yet!" So I'm starting small.

Yes, I could put this in my Ravelry stash in the sell/trade section, but I don't want to deal with selling and trading. I just want it gone. Plus, not everyone's on Ravelry, and this makes it fair.

Here's the deal. I've got three small things to give away. It's first come, first serve. Leave me a comment saying you want it, and it's yours! If you comment and I already have your email address, I'll be in touch about how to get it to you. If I don't have your email address, leave it in the comment (you can make it cryptic, not using the "@" symbol and so on) and I'll email you. There's not a lot of traffic on this blog, so your chances are pretty good!

First up:



Just kidding. You don't get the baby. She was just posing so adorably while I was snapping shots of the yarn, I couldn't resist.

Okay, okay. For real now:



3 skeins of Patons Beehive DK. It's an acrylic/nylon/wool blend. No yardage listed, but I used just under 3 skeins for a 26" circumference pullover for my nephew, so there's plenty for a baby set or toddler sweater.

Next:



1 skein of Bristol Gallery Buckingham (80% alpaca, 20% silk) in fingering weight. About 220 yards. It's luciously soft. I used almost 2 skeins for a sizable scarf. You can have this plus what's left of the second skein and it would be enough for a light lacy scarf or a pair of delicate handwarmers or a couple of baby hats.
ETA: Claimed by Katie!

Last, but not least:



4 skeins of RYC cashsoft DK. 3 are a dark herby green, 1 is a much lighter green-tinted cream that coordinates nicely. I bought this when Daniel was a baby, thinking I'd make him a sweater and a hat to go with it. Then when he got too big for a 3-skein sweater, I thought I'd turn it into a baby gift for one of the parade of babies being born in my circle of friends and relatives. Obviously, I haven't gotten around to either one, and I think I'd just feel better if someone else had it.
ETA: Claimed by Jen!

Any takers?

Finished! EZ child's tomten

Maybe I should take photography lessons (you know, with all that spare time I have, ha ha). Seriously, though, we have a pretty nice camera, and I wish I had the skills to take really, really good pictures of my finished objects, especially since so many of them are given away. In some ways, the close-up shots of details and works in progress are easier, but how do you set up a good shot of a fairly large finished piece? Anyone have suggestions?

In any case, here is the finished EZ tomten.



Armhole detail:



Here's a detail of the collar with zipper. I had enough yarn for the hooded version but I ran out of steam and did the short collar instead. Zippers are such a pain to install; the sweater was finished but for the zipper for a good two weeks before I finally spent a whole evening sewing it in. I didn't do a bad job, though I wish I would have made sure the zipper teeth were covered better with the knitted trim...speaking of the trim, I meant to do a i-cord edging, but went with the garter stitch instead. Just because.



Pattern: Child's tomten by Elizabeth Zimmerman, from The Opinionated Knitter
Yarn: Patons Classic Wool, about 4 skeins in the color "sage" and a little bit of "winter white" for the trim
Needles: size 7, for an approximate gauge of 5 st = 1"
Size: I was shooting for a 28" circumference. I'm not exactly sure what size/age child this sweater would fit. Maybe 6-8yo? It almost goes around me, though it's definitely too short for an adult size.
Made for: Afghans for Afghans. They will be having a big drive this fall for blankets and kids' sweaters. I thought about saving this for Anya but it's sized approximately for a grade-school kid. By the time she's big enough to wear it, I'm sure she won't want to have anything to do with a sweater her mom made!

Daniel was very taken with this sweater. He would see it lying around and say proudly "Mom this made!" He wanted to try and wear it one day...



It's way too big. I might have to make him one that fits properly for next winter.

preview

The tomten is finished!
But except for this picture, every shot is crap, so better photos later...stay tuned.

progress

I like it so far!



This yarn is old. How old, I don't know exactly, but it's got to be at least 30 years old (older than I am!), and it probably came from Scotland or thereabouts when my mom's late cousin was living there long ago. The wool is undyed and also contains some vegetable matter. Every time I come across a little piece of dried grass, I think about how old the yarn is and how far it has come.



What you see is the first several inches of a stole. The pattern is Twilight by Lisa Lloyd (from A Fine Fleece). It's very, very easy to memorize and therefore makes for great TV/car/watching-the-kids knitting. I like how it's coming out in this natural color, too.

I'm already thinking about the next lace project, though. I have lots of this natural Shetland lace yarn, and when this is done, I want to try something more challenging. Does anyone have suggestions for a lace pattern - perhaps a wide scarf or small shawl - that would be appropriate in this type of yarn?