Yarn chicken

Why is it that playing yarn chicken makes me want to knit faster?

I've spent the last few evenings binding off 864 stitches. Why I have ended up with 864 is a story for another day. 

Stay tuned for the yarn chicken winner. Will it be me 😁 or will I need to go stash diving?  

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Ankle warmers

My first FO of 2019. 

The Minnesota Clog Topper. 

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Langfield and Tensfield

I was looking for a good pattern for a hat to make for a friend who has lost her hair due to chemo treatments. 

First I made an Icing Swirl by Ysolda Teague. That turned out nice and soft but a little floppy. I had made some mods to make it a bit bigger than the last one.

Then I found the Langfield and Tensfield patterns by Martina Behm. I love them 😍 and just keep on making more. 

And more. 

And more. 

And more. 

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100 acts of sewing

I have been knitting some great hats (more later). 

But today I made Skirt No. 1 😁

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Carbeth gauge swatch

Needle size really does make a difference. I've knit up and blocked a swatch of knit picks wool of the Andes bulky. 

The suggested gauge is 14 stitches/ 4 inches or 3.5 stitches per inch. With size 11 needles I got 11 stitches/ 4 inches or 2.75 stitches per inch. With the size 10.5 needle I got 13 stitches/ 4 inches or 3.25 stitches per inch. 

On size 11 the fabric looks interesting and bulky but I think it is just too loose. The fabric looks better with the 10.5. The gauge is still not right but I can compensate by knitting the next smallest size. The difference between my gauge and the suggested gauge is about 3 inches in the finished garment. 

If I used the 11 and just knit my usual size I'd end up with a sweater more than 10 inches wider than I want. 

Needle size makes a difference. 

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North Shore yarn crawl goodies

Here are my goodies from the North Shore yarn crawl earlier this month. 

I didn't post earlier because some of these items were gifts in a swap. My partner has received her package, so now I can show off all the goodies.  I've already started working on Low Tide with the Ultra Alpaca Fine.

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North Shore Yarn Crawl 2018

I've been pretty much ignoring the emails about the North Shore Yarn crawl this year.  My yarn usage has been low over the past few years, and my yarn and fiber purchases have outpaced my yarn use.  But the yarn crawl starts today and so I looked at it more closely.

My new yarn store find (Another Yarn), closeish to my office, was on the crawl list.  So is what I thought was my closest LYS (Merrimack Yarns).  But looking at the list I found there were several stores I had never heard of nearby.  Some are clearly new, others just new to me.

A GARDEN FOR KNITTERS

52 Water Street, North Andover, MA

CIRCLE OF STITCHES

66 Wharf Street, Salem, MA

HOOKED KNITTING

65 Eastern Ave, Essex, MA

ROMNEY RIDGE YARNS

18 Market Street, Ipswich, MA

It almost made me plan a path to visit them tomorrow.  You qualify for the grande prize if you get a stamp from at least 6 of the 9 shops in the crawl.  But then I thought no need to run around.  My next few days are packed.  But it is good to know there are places nearby to visit when I need to smell the wool fumes.  And who knows, maybe I will visit one.