Just in Time

I finished off Eos this afternoon. As in all seams and the ends are sewn in.

This was last night. One sleeve seam and a few ends still needed to be done

Here are my pile of ends to prove that I did sew some in last night

And here it is finished. It needs to be blocked but there isn't time before the show.

Pattern: Eos from Rowan's All Seasons Chunky Collection
Yarn: Rowan All Seasons Chunky

This yarn although a chunky weight is light enough to wear for any season and shows beautiful stitch definition.

Now the push is on to get Windward finished. I'm guessing that I have about 60 rows to go.

After work I met dad and Beth at the storage unit to start packing Big Blue (the van has a name). The grid, cash desk, cash register and 6 boxes were just the start. Then we headed to the store. 2 boxes were put in Big Blue before the skies opened. And they opened hard. We will load the rest of the van in the morning. Beth went with dad to drop off the van and they had hail at the workshop and at my parents. It wasn't that bad in town where I stopped to get dinner.

I have an hour of paperwork and then it's knitting time. Maybe early to bed. Maybe. New Grey's Anatomy tonight.

I was sad to see who went on Survivor last night. Won't mention their name in case you haven't watched yet. If I was that person I would have looked for the Idol even if the others were watching me.

Thanks Melo

It was 7 this morning when Melo jumped off the bed which woke me up. He isn't the lightest on his feet. I could have gone back to sleep but decided to get the day going. After a quick trip out for a tea and bagel I sat down and finished the front of Eos before heading to work.

One sleeve to go. Next weekend a few of my suppliers are having Open Houses where I can see the new yarns coming for fall. My goal is to have the sweater done to wear-a week ahead of the original due date.

It was a crazy day in the store (I'm not complaining because we like crazy) but I don't feel like casting on the sleeve. There is also the small problem of this ball of yarn that is sitting beside me.

Beth is going to make Cherry Garcia (a free pattern on Ravelry) in Misti Handpaint Chunky. Her first attempt at cables. Yes, I'm going to cast on for her. The Frolic is coming and I need her.

She nicely asked me to cast off her Linen Stitch scarf as well. I politely declined but said that I would tomorrow.

Back to the Masters and then a Nascar race. Maybe a hockey game or two as well.

It happened

It was a busy TV night last night which meant lots of knitting. Eos is growing. Somewhere in my head I still think that I might get Shadow and Eos done for the Frolic.

It happened today. I tried to stop it.

Two skeins of Zen Yarn Garden Serenity 20 jumped into my knitting bag. I'm sorry to everyone who didn't get this colour. I have sent another order into Zen and asked them to make me something as close to this colour as possible.

Kim opened her purse and there was 2 skeins in there as well.

A parcel arrived from Ann yesterday with some samples for the store. In a perfect world I could take them outside for pictures but it is raining like crazy in Ancaster.

Countess Mitts

A delicate lace vine travels up the center of these feminine mitts. Adorn your hands with beauty and practicality.

2 balls of Blue Sky Alpacas Royal Petites - 100% alpaca. They feel good on your hands!!

Welted Fingerless Gloves from Churchmouse Yarns
Knit in Rowan Felted Tweed - 1 ball is all you need.

“As pretty as they are practical. And the perfect gift.”

It's never too early to start planning for Christmas.

Turkish Bed Socks

1 skein (50grams) of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock. We used Christmas at Downton

The pattern is from Churchmouse Yarns.

They make great gifts as they’re easy to fit and don’t take a lot of yarn. They’re nice for around the house. And terrific for travel. 

My picture isn't going to entice you to knit them (I guess I should have put them on-but the colour looks good) so here is the picture from the pattern.

They look really comfy.

For the next few days I'm going to be glued to my computer and the TV. It's Masters weekend. Unfortunately the TV coverage doesn't start until 3pm so I will be watching online in the morning.

Survivor tonight. In the commercials it talks about the men joining together and voting off the women. I don't think that will happen-the men never get it together to form an alliance.

There was a small break in the rain so I ran outside with the cardigan that Ann knit

The pattern is from Sirdar. Book #441 for their new yarn Americana.
The yarn is Rowan's Revive.

Purelife revive is Rowan's wonderful tweed effect, fully recycled summer yarn. It has a beautiful rusticity.  Recycled Cotton: 36%, Recycled Silk: 36%, Recycled Viscose: 28%

The yarn feels a bit hard and I don't mean that in a bad way. Cables look amazing in it! There is lots of body so your garment doesn't have a droopy look to it. And it is tweed which you won't find in many summer yarns.

I'm going to try and get a few rows done on Shadow before heading home. Are we getting bad weather tomorrow??

Halfway

I sat down like a good girl last night to rip out the shoulder shaping of Eos and finish the back.

The front ribbing is done and I'm about 10 rows into the chart. Just past the halfway point of the sweater.

It was exciting to see the truck arrive this morning at the storage unit with my madelinetosh. 31 boxes have been unpacked, counted and repacked. 18 came to the store and 13 are extra stock that will stay in storage for now.

There are bags and bags of tosh sitting in the store right now. I made one trip earlier today and Kim got most of it put away. This is the second load that I just delivered. We will work on that tomorrow. Then kits for the Frolic.

Some of the 526 skeins of merino light that we received.

 A mixed bag of pretty colours.

Some vintage, merino and merino light.

I'm happy to report that I didn't bring any tosh home with me. It was hard to leave it all in the store. And I left it too late. Beth had dinner ready so I had to stop playing. I wasn't sure what pattern I wanted to do either. 

That has been rectified. I'm thinking varjo (shadow) by Veera Valimaki..You can find the pattern on Ravelry.

So now I have the pattern. The next challenge is picking just two colours. I also have to think of the Sunstruck KAL which starts this week. For that I want three or four colours. Yes, I can start two new projects because two projects were blocked this week. :)

It's time for baseball so I'm moving upstairs with my knitting. The good thing about baseball is you can easily watch and knit. The game moves pretty slow so you won't miss anything. We have Hell's Kitchen and Criminal Minds taping as well. Lots of knitting in the near future!!

The air was blue

I sat down last night to work on Eos and got far enough to start the shoulder shaping on the back. The first side was done and then I had to cast off 25 stitches (for the centre back) before shaping the other shoulder. There were WAY too many stitches on the needle. Darn Rowan. The pattern was wrong. I counted and recounted and the numbers didn't add up. There were bad words coming out of my mouth. Then it hit me. SORRY ROWAN-I AM AN IDIOT!!!! I took out the armhole shaping because I wasn't sure the sleeves would be wide enough. Also the sleeves are a lace pattern and I wasn't sure if the top would be stretchy and hard to sew in. Their numbers were correct and I forgot about the 11 extra stitches I had on each side. Instead of ripping out while watching The Amazing Race I cast on for the front and got the ribbing done.

My Linen Stitch scarf is done. Blocked. Ends sewn in.

Pattern: Churchmouse Yarns Linen Stitch Scarf
Yarn: Rastita from Malabrigo
Needles: 7mm

There were a few more bad words this afternoon when I found out that the madelinetosh won't be arriving until tomorrow. My day was planned and I don't do well when things don't go as planned. I spent the time working out the booth for the Frolic. I think it is figured out. I needed some more mannequin clothes which I ran out and bought. Now I need some more grid. Then we are set. Kim will be in the store tomorrow and I will be in the storage until unpacking yarn. :)

Now it's time to take out the shoulder shaping. I will never make that mistake again!!

Quilting

Small problem before I could plug in the sewing machine last night. I needed to figure out where I was on the quilt. It is from a Kaffe Fassett book and I am following a chart - It is made up of many different sized squares. I didn't make any notes so I wasn't sure where I was and it took about 10 minutes to get back on track. (I tell knitters to leave notes in their knitting bags so when they pick up a project that has been sitting for awhile they know where they are in the pattern. HELLO! Follow your own advice.) Then I needed to cut some more squares. I hate that part. If someone would cut them out for me I would be happy just to sew. I got some squares joined and all was going well. Then it wasn't going so good. Something happened with my bobbin and the machine starting jamming. I didn't touch anything so I was stumped. I tried to fix it but just got frustrated. I unplugged the machine and moved onto knitting. I guess someone was trying to tell me to get my scarf finished. Maybe I can figure it out tonight. Here is the quilt so far. This strip will be a few squares longer and then there are two more strips.

My work would be going quicker if I cut the squares in the numbers that Kaffe asked for and then I could follow the chart. Instead I have many more fabrics so I'm putting colours wherever I want. I like the look but it means more planning to make sure that colours are evenly distributed.

I talked with my mom and she has an extra machine. Beth is bringing it home for me so I can finish the strip tonight. I did a bit of measuring and Kaffe only asks for three strips. If it is going to go on my king size bed then I will have to add in another strip. 

Here's a little teaser of some yarn that should be coming soon from Dream in Color. Smooshy with Cashmere. Great for socks but you can also use it for a scarf or shawl.

With its luscious blend of luxury fibers, Smooshy with Cashmere is opulence in a skein. The smooth, plied base, combined with our unique dyeing process, gives Smooshy with Cashmere its deep and lushly-shaded tones. And, 20% cash­mere makes this yarn divinely next-to-skin soft, while 10% nylon lends a durability that means Smooshy with Cashmere is equally at home in socks and open, airy lacework.

70% superwash merino, 20% cashmere, 10% nylon
4 oz. & 400 yds.
7.5 – 9 sts. inch
U.S. 0 to 2 needles

These are just a sampling of the colours. I believe that there are 14 or 15 coming in total.

Look who came to work today. Eos. I'm making progress. It was way too cold and windy to go outside for a picture.

Mr. UPS just brought in some boxes from Rowan including 3 new colours of All Seasons Chunky (wouldn't my sweater look great in the fuchsia??)

And Rowan Studio 28

Inspired by the 1960's 'Mod' look, this collection features strong graphic patterns and bold stripes. The designs predominantly feature our Rowan Kid Classic yarn with the addition of Kidsilk Haze to some designs to emphasize the trend for thick and thin textures.

I'm going to sign off and get back to Eos. Maybe I can get the back done today.

Growing

I'm on a mission! Last night I got 12 rows knit on Eos and so far today I have 24 rows done. The back measures just over 18". The pattern asks for the sweater to measure 24" but that is a bit short for me so mine will be closer to 27" in length.

How come I only got 12 rows done last night? I helped rip out someone's Linen Stitch Scarf and then recast on with a different colour. I'm getting really good at casting on. :) Someone is much happier how the colours are coming out now.

It's time to get back to my sweater. Golf and Nascar are on right now and tonight we have The Amazing Race and Celebrity Apprentice. Can I finish the back tonight??

Rowan Magazine #54

The other day I put a link in for Anne's blog and the preview of Rowan Magazine #54. Anne had more Rowan videos on her blog last night. I sent her an email and she told me that there is a Rowan YouTube channel. I didn't know that. Here is the link. You can see all the books coming for fall. Sorry to those who didn't get to the link yet. The magazines aren't available for viewing anymore. I think we are going to have to wait until closer to the release date. There are a few Martin Storey sweaters that I want RIGHT NOW! My wish list is definitely going to be long. It looks like there will be three new yarns. I will be ordering the yarns and books sometime in April and we will have them in the store in August. As you know I'm not a patient person. I'm not sure I can wait. :)

I didn't knit a stitch last night. I went for a nap at 5:30 after work. I woke up and let the dogs out a few times but pretty much stayed in bed until 6:30 this morning. I think I might have been a bit tired. Now it's 7:45. My laundry is done. The dishwasher is unloaded and reloaded. That means I can pull out my knitting soon.

Soon because I want to get Beth's knitting Soaked.

And it's Soaking. The kitchen smells very nice-I used Yuzu Soak today.

The dogs are fed. I've been to the grocery store. Now I need to lay out Beth's knitting and then I'll be ready to knit.

I got a bit of knitting in today. There was some time playing with Roko. Then there was a nap. Yes, I needed a nap even after the sleep I had last night. Beth wasn't here so I had to make my own dinner. And then clean up the mess I made. It really cut into my knitting time.

Then there was a knitting emergency. When I knit I push on the needle with the first finger on my right hand (the one beside my thumb). If I knit a lot I can get a small hole in my finger. I didn't pay any attention and my finger was bleeding. Not good when knitting with white cotton. I looked at my sweater and there was blood. I had to rip back three rows. I thought about leaving it and trying to get it out in the wash but it would always bother me. A few bad words were said.

Here it is so far - nice and clean. 8 rows done. Lots left.

Another FO

The Inspira Cowl is finished. Blocked. Ends sewn in. DONE!

I tried to be creative with my picture. Didn't work (the styrofoam head didn't want to sit in the branches like I planned in my head) but it does show the cowl. :)

I'm a bit further on the sleeve of Eos. Last night while everyone was watching the Oscars we watched The Amazing Race and some episodes of The Mentalist. I don't like going to the movie theatre. Can't sit that long without my knitting or pausing to go to the washroom or to get a drink. I like to be able to talk while watching a movie as well. I haven't seen any of the movies that were nominated so sitting through the show can be a bit boring.

Just one question. Who goes on The Amazing Race when they are afraid of water? Why do you sit at a detour for 45 minutes discussing if you can do it or not? Try it and if you can't then try the other one. Not that hard. Especially for people who are smart.

I was adding my Inspira Cowl to Ravelry when I came across a beautiful cowl pattern.
Joselyn Cowl knit in Blue Sky Alpacas Alpaca Silk. You can also use Metalico from Blue Sky Alpacas or madelinetosh pashmina.

I decided to take the sleeve for Eos outside and get a picture on my friend. I quickly pinned it so it isn't sitting as neatly as it should but it lets you see the lace pattern. I'm into the second ball and have about an inch and a half to go. Or so I think. I'm going to put the sleeve on a holder and start the back. If I do the sleeve length that the pattern calls for I usually end up with sleeves that are too long. I'm going to knit the front and back, sew the shoulders together and then pin the sleeves in to make sure they are the correct length. Much easier than getting everything knit and sewn together only to find out that the sleeves have to be rolled up. Yes, I could take out the seams and shorten the sleeves but remember I'm a lazy knitter. It's easier to roll them. :)

And what is the weather tomorrow going to be? I just looked on my iPad and it says 20cm (8") tomorrow and then 5-10cm (2-4") on Wednesday. Are we really getting that much?

Blocking

Last night we went to Niagara Falls. The water was crashing really hard and looked great with the lights. The Falls are such an amazing sight. I think we take them for granted because they are so close.

I just blocked the Inspira Cowl.

I used the new scent Yuzu from Soak. Tart citrus and crushed eucalyptus. My kitchen smells great.

I have it laid out on a Shamwow. It really soaks up the water so the cowl will dry faster.

Today is a busy TV day. The Daytona 500, finals of the golf match play and then The Amazing Race.

The Daytona 500 is finished and I was busy during the race.

I couldn't resist. One project done means I can start another one. This is Eos. The yarn is Rowan's All Seasons Chunky and the patten is in the All Seasons Chunky Collection.

I talked about the Knitter's Frolic yesterday morning. My goal is to wear this at the Frolic. Very doable. I am almost finished the first ball. If I get moving it should take less than a month.

Mr. Melo wanted in the picture. Mr. Roko was sniffing around my work but didn't show his face for the camera.

It is going to be an interesting episode of The Amazing Race tonight. Two teams are going to be starting a long time after the others. The show always tries to bunch them up but I'm sure they didn't think they would have that problem this early in the season.

Mom and dad are heading back to Myrtle Beach this week so we have been watching the weather. It looks like we could see lots of snow on Tuesday. Right now I am reading 15-20cm (6-8"). YUCK!! I'm ready for spring.