Blogiversary

I can hardly believe it -- the end of this month marks my first full year blogging!

I was flicking through the last 12 months and it was fun to take a look at the things I've been able to produce. Here's some of the knits:


And then there's been a bunch of other crafty stuff in the few hours when I'm not knitting (or working):


In truth I never really had a strong desire to blog (as you've noticed, I'm not a gifted writer). I'm more a blog reader... enjoying the works and words of others. It was my Step Kids that suggested I might want to give it a go. And I figured I'd try it... more out of curiosity than anything else.

And yet here I am a year later still posting. It's proved to be a great way to share my hobbies, travels and other tidbits with my family back in the UK. But what's been an even nicer surprise is when you -- folks I haven't met before -- swing by and drop me a little note.
Thank you.

Time for something new

I've been focusing on the Tangled Yoke these last couple of weeks and it seems to be going well -- I'm making pretty good progress on the body of it.

Right now it's nothing but rows, and rows, and rows of stocking stitch and so I decided to break the monotony by starting something new -- the Shetland Triangle:

I've jumped on the bandwagon with this pattern and subbed the lace yarn with something a little more substantial -- an Alapca Silk mix that's just lovely to work with. I haven't worked on many lace projects but I am enjoying lace knitting. There's something about devoting all your attention to the knitting, and shutting out the rest of the world, that is just so relaxing to me.

Kicking-off the Tangled Yoke

With the Icarus Shawl done I can now dive into a new project -- Eunny Jang's Tangled Yoke. Progress has been slow so far (turns out that I don't multi-task well). But I'm liking the yarn and the colour... I have high hopes.


With this underway I've decided to officially put the Debbie Bliss ribbed wrap, and the Rowan Roadster into hibernation until next Spring. I think with the Roadster I could be setting some kind of record for the amount of time taken to complete a sweater -- this one's in it's 3rd or 4th year on the needles.
Any takers for a 'better' record?

Other stuff? I'm on Ravelry! This site is fantastic and I find myself absorbed for way longer than I should (maybe this is another reason progress on tangled yoke is slow). And if you are wondering why my Flickr page is suddenly full of pictures of yarn, that's Ravelry's fault too (hehehe) -- I'm trying to populate my stash section on the site. Could be fighting a losing battle here though! Anyway, if you're not signed up, I'd recommend checking it out.

Icarus Shawl

It's blocked and it's a beauty!

If you are interested, there are plenty more pics, but I thought I'd share just one more here. I love the detail, and how the pins are all lined up like little soldiers down the points of the shawl:

Pattern: Icarus Shawl by Miriam Felton (Interweave Knits, Summer 2006)
Yarn: JaggerSpun Zephyr Silk/Wool
Colour: Juniper

Icarus Shawl

I love it!

It's not even blocked yet and already it looks beautiful.


More to follow in the next couple of days, after it has been blocked.

The cardi was supposed to be a capelet after all

A little while back I'd blogged about my Malabrigo cardigan. It was based on the anthropologie-inspired capelet pattern... but I'd made a couple of changes because I'm more of a cardi than a capelet person. I'd hoped to take my cardi on my last-minute trip to the UK last week and, in my rush to pack, I decided that the freshly washed cardi would dry much faster if it had some assistance from the tumble dryer. Obviously my brain wasn't in gear, because it shrank into this little number:


Maybe it was meant to be a capelet all along, or donated to Jac like the other one. (It does look good on you sis! And gives me an excuse to reknit this pattern for the 3rd time... and I've got just the yarn in my stash.)

Big pink cardigan

I'd been pestering Jac to take a picture of her big pink cardi. As I'd had no luck, I decided to take advantage of being back in the UK this last week to 'bully' her into it hehehe.

It's a beauty isn't it! It actually started out as 'Chrissie' from the Rowan Big Wool pamphlet... but after it was knit up, it was MASSIVE so Jac decided to felt it. I think it was a great decision. I especially love how the collar turned out and the three-quarter length sleeves.