Kounting Sheep

Color

2012-01-26T17:00:00.000-07:00

I'm wearing red shoes today, which makes me very happy

It's no secret that I love color. All you have to do is look at my projects over the years, and you will find that there has been no shortage of color from this fiber enthusiast. But something I want to try and do this year is focus more intentionally on color pairing, namely, stepping outside my box of color combinations. I love these colors for inspiration (especially that Tangerine Tango, Pantone's Color of 2012):

My first attempts at this will be in baby blankets. I've already purchased yarn for two baby blankets, using unconventional color palettes for baby boys. Not that the colors aren't suitable for boys, but they typically aren't the first "go-to" colors when knitting blankets. I'm also in love with bold solids right now, so I think I'll be staying away from the variegated varieties of yarns and focusing in on the solids.

Color wheel

Another thing I've been latching onto more recently, especially since I started spinning, is natural colors. I'm in love with browns and cremes and greys right now, which is great because my current spinning project is a natural-creme-colored Jacob fleece. A great thing about natural colors is that you can pop some bold color with it for some modern flair (grey and bright yellow, yes! brown and a rich red, absolutely! lime green and white, love it!).

So playing with color is just one of my many goals this year, which luckily for me, isn't a very hard goal at all.

Back to knitting!

Mallard

2012-01-18T00:00:00.000-07:00

I posted several months ago (here) about one of my favorite yarns that I've spun, called "Mallard." It didn't take very long for me to dive into this skein once the weather started getting colder. I knew I had wanted to make a hat with this yarn, so I was absolutely thrilled when the yardage amount ended up being enough for not only a hat, but also a pair of fingerless mitts and a cowl.

{Mallard Tam

Pattern: Ysolda's Snapdragon Tam from Whimsical Little Knits 2

Used half the skein, approx. 232 yards

US Size 5 needles}

Love the color changes. The colors are a bit richer, brighter than in these pics. But spinning definitely toned down the color palette, as did the knitting.

I'm the one in the middle, wearing the hat. You can just barely see it.

I think the pattern may have been just a little bit too intricate for the yarn, but the cabling detail is still visible, so that makes me happy. For the mitts, I used the coordinating Snapdragon Mitts pattern, and again, I think the detail work gets lost in the colors. But I don't want to reknit them, and they are very cozy to wear!

After finishing the mitts, I had just enough yarn leftover to make a little cowl. Since this is precious handspun, I wanted to make something that would be close to my skin, as well as use up every last yard of yarn (which I did). Luckily I found some coordinating sock yarn in my stash in a nice neutral brown to finish out this simple feather and fan lace stitch cowl (which I finished and wore on Christmas Eve).

Knitting in the car on Christmas Eve

I just love knitting with my own handspun! I think one of my goals this year will be to weave something with handspun.

Back to knitting!

Photo Friday: First Woven Fabric

2011-12-30T13:55:00.003-07:00

My first finished hand-woven scarf. It's full of mistakes, but I love it!

Dream Weaver

2011-12-27T17:43:00.002-07:00

This year for Christmas two dreams came true: 1) I got to have a white Christmas! and 2) My parents bought me a weaving loom! Yes, that's right, I can now add the title "weaver" to my status as a fiber artist.

My family went up to Williams, AZ on Christmas Eve to ride the "Polar Express." My 2-year-old niece absolutely loved it! She got so excited to meet Santa at the "North Pole," and it was fun to watch her reactions. What was even more fun was the fact that there was tons of snow on the ground! It's been a long time since I've been in snow for Christmas, so it was definitely special.

I actually requested that my parents buy me a weaving loom this year instead of other gifts, so it was no surprise. It arrived the end of November, and I was able to assemble it to make sure all the parts were there. However, I wasn't "allowed" to use it until Christmas, so as soon as we got back into town on Christmas day, I pulled my loom out.

Kromski Harp 24" Weaving Loom

Rigid Heddle

Unfortunately, I spent the next 7 hours trying to get it warped properly, and ended up only making a total mess and throwing away about 800 yards of ruined yarn (I made the same mistake not once, but twice. Ouch!). I went back to YouTube and found this video from Ashford that changed everything! On Monday, I successfully warped my loom and happily started weaving some beautiful fabric on it.

I'm so excited to be weaving! After I got my spinning wheel, I knew that a loom would be my next big fiber purchase. There's just something about spinning my own yarn and weaving my own fabric that is so ancient and magical. These two arts have been around much longer than knitting and crocheting--they are ancient crafts, dating back as far as fabric has been made. There's a je nais se quoi I feel about these two crafts; I can't explain what it is, but I knew I just had to be a spinner and a weaver.

The only thing left to get now is a sheep! (Well, I'm close. More on that later...)

Back to weaving!

Happy, Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T23:41:00.001-07:00

This first non-retail Christmas for me has been an absolute blessing! It's amazing how much more fun the holiday is when you aren't surrounded by crazy, angry people who hate you because you happen to be wearing a nametag. This week has been one full of blessings, including an office staff lunch, multiple thoughtful gifts, time to hang out with friends, opening gifts with family early, even seeing a great movie. And the best part is that this week I have woken up each day more and more aware that these blessings come from a great Savior, who came to this earth so that I may have the ultimate blessing: eternal life through belief in his sacrifice. Christmas will never lose its wonder as long as I never lose sight of God's love for me.

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoptions as sons (and daughters)."

Galatians 4:4-5

"Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly."

Romans 5:1-6

Photo Friday: Owl Brooch on My Shawl

2011-12-16T13:53:00.001-07:00

Rare

2011-12-08T17:19:00.001-07:00

Me wearing my Citron shawlette at lunch after church on Sunday.

My bestie called me a "vintage barbie!"

I'll tell you what's rare--pictures of me actually wearing the things I make. I have tons and tons of pictures of the things I make, because I'm the one who takes the pictures. But it's rather awkward to take a picture of oneself, and rather embarrassing to ask others to take pictures of yourself for the sole purpose of just getting the knitted garment in the picture. So here I have not only one but two--count them TWO--pictures of me wearing my hand-knit items.

Last Thursday a group of my friends and I went to an outdoor shopping center where they have a 60 foot tree set up and make it "snow" two times a night. It may seem odd to people who live in snowy climates to think of any event in which they have to make it "snow," but here in Mesa where snow is rare (yes, it does snow every once in awhile, like last Christmas, for about 5 minutes), an opportunity to play in "snow" is not quickly lost. Unfortunately, the "snow" they were making was only bubbles blown from machines on the roof that looked remarkably like snow but, alas, was not.

It was, however, freezing cold (in the 40s-50s, which is pretty cold by any standard), so I of course had on my newly finished strawberry mittens, my Rose Red beret, and, you can't tell because I'm wearing a jacket, but I was also wearing my new sweater. My friend in the picture was kind enough to give me a piggy back ride, since I had sprained my ankle the week before and was having a hard time walking.

{Strawberry Mittens by Spilly Jane

Yarn was some random sock yarns in my stash

Size 2 needles

Mods include making the cuff and thumb red, taking out two strawberry repeats to make smaller

Knit in 3 days!}

My mom liked these mittens so much that now I have to make a pair for her. Lucky for her that I like to knit and I like this pattern, so I should have no problem whipping up another set of these. They just have a special charm to them--they are my new favorite mittens right now, and I pretty much wear them every morning. Thanks to this cold-spell we are having, and the fact that I work in a chilly church office, I have daily opportunities to wear the hand-knits!

Back to knitting!

A Day Like Today

2011-12-01T17:20:00.001-07:00

A day like this...

...requires wearing this: my freshly finished NaKniSweMo sweater!

{Minimalist Cardigan
Patons Classic Merino Wool in color way "Cranberry"
Approx. 1000 yards
Modifications include lengthening sleeves, doing 1x1 rib for front band/collar
Started 2 Nov 2011, finished 26 Nov 2011}

Yes, it's December 1st, and I'm posting about my November sweater. But hey, I finished it in November and wore it on Sunday, which was still November. Now I'm wearing it today, and it is the perfect sweater for me! No buttons, so I just wear it open. Roomy and comfy, this sweater is my new favorite!

Back to knitting!

Photo Friday: Stripey

2011-11-18T07:26:00.000-07:00

Stripey Scarf worn today, make the stomach flu go away!

Shipwreck Shawl

2011-11-17T12:59:00.001-07:00

This year for me has been one of epic crafting. I realized the other day that I had yet to post about my Shipwreck shawl that I made the first half of the year. I've hinted at it here and here, but never did a full post showing off this beauty.

It's one that I consider a masterpiece in my knitting thus far, partly because of the knitting, and partly because it involved my own handspun yarn.

It took me three months to spin the 7 ounces of a merino top in colorway "Baltic Blue."

I spun it worsted, laceweight, 2-plied, and ended up with 2 beautiful skeins equaling 1490 yards!This had been my most consistent and thinnest yarn to-date (I have since spun even better yarns than this!).

In May, I worked for three months to knit my first ever circular shawl, using the Shipwreck pattern. I decided to omit the beads because I'm not a bead person, and I felt that the handspun was so pretty on its own that I didn't want to add anything else to it. This project reminds me of my first few months working my new job at the church, because this is the project I would take with me to work on during my lunch breaks.

I finished the shawl in July. Almost exactly 6 months from fiber to shawl! Although the circular shawl is not my favorite shape (I'm rather short, so it's a lot of shawl for a short person), I've been enjoying wearing it to church now that we have entered what we consider our "winter" weather.

My favorite way to wear it is folded in half, draped around my shoulders. Or now that it's a bit cooler, I wear it fully open, scrunched around my neck and thrown over a shoulder, so it looks like a beautiful poncho. I just might make another circular shawl after all...

Back to knitting!

Progress

2011-11-12T16:47:00.001-07:00

The making of my sweater for NaKniSweMo continues.

The first few inches of the back

5 inches in a few hours

The back and the right front are completely done. Left front started.

Could it actually be finished this week?

Back to knitting!

And So It Begins

2011-11-02T19:10:00.001-07:00

November is known for many things, one of which is National Knit a Sweater in a Month aka NaKniSweMo. The origins of this is based off of NaNoWriMo, which is National Novel Writing Month where people try to write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. For a knitter, something like a sweater can easily rack up 50,000 stitches.

I've had an itch to make several sweaters lately and having the yarn on hand has been torture. I had determined to knit some sweaters this month anyway, so having a National knitting month dedicated to the very thing I want to knit is just icing on the cake! So for November I will be making at least 1 sweater, if not 2. I've been wanting to make a Minimalist Cardigan for several years now, and I've had the pattern and yarn for just as long. Tonight, I finally cast-on! If all goes well, I'll have a finished sweater in 2 weeks or less. Then that would leave the other 2 weeks to make a Beatnik pullover!

Back to (sweater) knitting!

Fall is Actually Spring

2011-10-14T07:15:00.000-07:00

I've been telling myself for years that I live in the wrong state. I love the cool autumn and cold winter months, but those don't last very long here in Mesa, Arizona. In fact, right now it's mid-October and we are having a heat wave, with temps still reaching the triple-digits. Sigh. Then one day, bam, the temp will just drop by about 30-40 degrees, and then it will officially be sweater weather!

With summer so hot here, it's almost as if summer is my winter. Then, when Fall comes, it's like spring, full of fresh hope and relief from the weather I hate so much. Plus Fall brings so many wonderful new patterns and yarns, that I just can't help that it's my favorite time of year. I'm already busy working on Christmas gifts, sweaters, shawls, mittens (oh the mittens! I'm in such a mitten mood!), and hats. I really could use some new socks too, so I think I'll add them to the list.

To help with all this knitting, I won a bunch of Malabrigo yarn from Mr. Yarn's anniversary giveaway (pictured above). These 7 skeins of wooly goodness arrived at my house yesterday. After being gone all day at work and Bible study, it was great to come home late last night and open up this package and feel all this glorious yarn. I haven't made plans for any of it yet, so for now I'm just enjoying looking at it through the giant clear ziploc that it now sits in on my bedroom floor (the stash is overflowing at the moment. Shh, don't tell anyone!).

Happy Fall everyone, and back to knitting!

Hexagranny & An eBook

2011-09-28T18:42:00.001-07:00

Introducing my newest design, Hexagranny! This simple baby blanket is a great way to use a traditional crochet stitch, but in a unique shape. If granny squares have you bored (which I'm not sure I could ever get bored with a granny square, but still...), try this 6-sided granny! Hexagons seem to be the new square right now, so get a copy of my pattern for only $1.99 to make one of your own! The pattern also includes instructions on how to make a larger sized Hexagranny as well.

Hexagranny is also included in my newest eBook collection: Crocheted Afghans. This eBook includes 3 of my previously-published patterns Garden Joy, Loggy Squares, and Straight Granny (listed in order of release), as well as the new Hexagranny pattern. For only $6 you can have all four patterns in a PDF file to put on your favorite electronic reading device.

Visit Kounting Sheep Designs on Etsy or my Ravelry section to purchase these designs and more!

On the Wheel: Bluefaced Leicester

2011-09-21T22:00:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday when the new Knitty went live, I spent some time perusing Knittyspin, like I always do. It seems that the past few issues have caught my eye more because of the spinning articles than because of the knitting patterns. And of course, reading about spinning stuff just made me itch to get on my wheel. It's been over 2 months since I've had any time to spin, so finally on Tuesday night I made some time.

My goal recently is to try spinning different fibers. So far I've done merino, merino + firestar, alpaca + silk, and domestic wool. I was really excited to acquire some Bluefaced Leicester wool, Cotton + flax, and another type of wool that I can't remember the name of now. I decided to spin up the Bluefaced Leicester, and this stuff is great! I can see why it's commonly recommended for beginners, because it is very easy to spin. I don't have to do any predrafting and it spins beautifully. It's soft and has a little bit of lustre to it, so I can already tell from the singles that this is going to be a very beautiful yarn.

I'm fractal spinning this fiber (read this post for my first discussion about this technique), so I'm excited to see how the colors mix and match up once I ply. Unfortunately, it's a Christmas present for someone, so I can't reveal the colors. But I can say that the colors are deep, rich, vibrant ones that are going to make for a lovely yarn and a lovely knitted item!

Social Knitting

2011-09-15T16:49:00.002-07:00

I've noticed recently that as my social life has gotten more active in the last 2 years, my social knitting has decreased. What I mean by that is I haven't been knitting/crocheting as much when I'm just hanging out with my friends, or out to a restaurant, or just waiting for something to start. I'm still bringing projects along, but somehow they always get left behind in the car.

It was so good on Sunday, then, to actually bring my knitting INTO the restaurant for lunch after church. My singles group has a tradition of eating Sunday lunch together every Sunday after church, and it's something I look forward to all week! We usually hang out well into the afternoon, eating and enjoying each other's company. This past Sunday, I brought along the new sweater project I started, and I was amazed at how much knitting I was able to get done while just enjoying conversation at the table! And I forget how much my friends like to see me doing something I love: playing with yarn.

Especially when I have a variegated skein of yarn, it brings hours of entertainment to both myself and the people watching enthralled as the color changes ("Pink! Oh now it's Blue! Wait, what'll be next, oh Yellow! And there's Orange...")

Back to knitting!

The End is in Sight

2011-09-06T14:31:00.002-07:00

The back, the front (pictured above), and Sleeve 1 are done. Over halfway done with Sleeve 2, and then it'll be time to put the whole thing together. Can't believe I'm almost done with this epic piece of knitting! Prepare for picture overload when it's done.

Photo Friday: Fair Isle

2011-09-02T16:53:00.002-07:00

This is the hardest thing I've ever made, but it'll be worth it, since it's a sweater for my mom!

Count Some Sheep

2011-09-01T09:27:00.001-07:00

Here is video of sheep in Iceland. If you count the sheep, you will fall asleep. (Don't try this at work!)

Photo Friday: Roving

2011-08-26T11:20:00.002-07:00

Just got this Cotton/Flax roving in the mail this week. I have yet to spin anything other than wool or alpaca, so I'm excited to try a plant fiber. It feels super soft, so I'm hoping it will achieve a soft yarn.

On the Wheel: Quack!

2011-08-24T22:22:00.004-07:00

As soon as I saw the name of this fiber I just had to have it: "Just Ducky!" It reminded me of my sister's love of rubber ducks, so I was excited to get this colorway of yellow, white, black, brown, red, green and shades of colors in between. This was my first time spinning superwash merino, and I have to say that this was the easiest thing I've ever spun. It took me less than 8 hours in one weekend to spin and ply this lovely yarn.
This yarn also represents my first attempt at fractal spinning, which is a technique in color theory. Basically, you take the fiber and split it in half length-wise, and then spin the two halves at different color repeat length intervals. The first half you spin in one long color repeat, and then the second half you keep the repeats in the same order, but you split it in half again and then spin in chunks. This allows the singles when 2-plied to line up in a way that allows for a dynamic color explosion! In some places the colors will line up perfectly, and then in other places it will vary, creating an interesting color palette that's just hard to describe in words.

Mallard

4 ounces, 424 yards
2-ply, fractal spun
Superwash Merino
from Urban GypZ
original colorway called "Just Ducky"

I have to say that this skein of yarn is my favorite one that I've spun to-date. It's also my most evenly spun yarn, with the singles only having about 10 inches worth of difference, which is quite remarkable! This is also the softest skein of wool I've ever touched that didn't have silk or alpaca or cashmere in it! The generous 424 yards that I have to play with now will become a lovely tam and hand-warmer set, hopefully to be knit this Fall.

Whenever I see this yarn, I can't help but think "quack, quack!"

Back to knitting!

Weekend Getaway

2011-08-22T17:05:00.006-07:00

On Friday night while eating dinner, I got a phone call from one of my best friends saying, "pack your stuff, we're taking you to Cali like right now." So within half an hour I was on the road to cooler weather and a much-needed girls' getaway with my two besties. Unfortunately it was too dark to knit on the way out, but I definitely got plenty of knitting time the rest of the weekend.

Knitting in the morning on the balcony, with a view of Long Beach Bay.

Knitting on Huntington beach.

I have always wanted to knit on the beach, and now I can say that I have! There were plenty of strange looks, but I'm sure it's not the weirdest thing someone has ever done on a beach. Someday I hope to do it again. I've definitely become a beach girl, despite suffering from a sunburn (ultra-white skin and sun exposure don't mix, even with spf 50 sunscreen). Next time I'll take a chair and an umbrella, along with my knitting!
Back to knitting!

Forest Green

2011-08-18T18:38:00.005-07:00

It's no secret that I'm fond of using non-pastel colors for baby blankets, especially when it comes to boys (for example, I think bright red is a great boy color, don't you?). When my mom unloaded some of her stash on me, I was thrilled when I found enough of this forest green colored yarn to make not just one but two baby blankets! Since most of my pregnant friends are having boys, I thought it would be a great boy blanket color.

Pine Forest Baby Blanket
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft in Forest Green; 2.5 skeins
US Size 7 needle

I just love when yarn color and pattern name pair up perfectly! How appropriate that this lovely free pattern was called "Pine Forest." And I'm not afraid of using a masculine lace stitch pattern for a boy, as long as it's just that: masculine. No frilly ruffles on this blanket!

And I especially love that this color green will offset the new baby's bright blue eyes and strawberry blonde (probably will be red) hair.

Back to crocheting!

Mainly What I've Been Doing the Last 3 Months

2011-07-30T22:35:00.005-07:00

1390 yards worth of shawl-knitting

2312 yards worth of yarn-spinning

Posts to come with fuller descriptions of both projects!

Star

2011-07-21T18:52:00.003-07:00

"And the stars,
like you,
reap beauty for the moon..."

A lovely hat for a lovely friend of mine. She makes these amazing origami paper stars that are so tiny a whole collection of them fit inside a glass ornament. Last Christmas when I wanted to make a bunch of gifts for my friends, I knew that as soon as I saw this star hat, I had to make it for her.

I designed another garment for this same star-loving friend, but I can't reveal it yet. Someday! But for now I keep wishing on stars...

On the Wheel, Off the Wheel

2011-07-02T17:13:00.007-07:00

Just a quick post to show what's been eating up all my free time lately, both of which involve handspun.

My current spinning project, almost complete:

My current knitting project--Shipwreck Shawl--with the end in sight:
Thanks to a 3-day weekend, I'm hoping to get lots of sleep time and knitting time. Working full-time now has cut into my yarn time quite significantly, so I have to use every opportunity to make the things I want to make.

Back to knitting!

PS> You can follow me on Twitter now! @Kountingsheep

My Hat

2011-06-11T10:03:00.006-07:00

I spent last week on vacation in Florida, going to the NEXT Conference and Disney World. Of course, every time I go on vacation now, there has to be a new hand-knit to wear, because that's what knitters do. So my lovely handspun became a Rose Red beret that I wore multiple days on the trip.

4 ounce of Fire Red Merino
1 ounce of Fire star
Spun slightly woolen
Navajo plied
218 yards

At first I made the larger size of the hat, wanting it to be plenty floppy and use up all of my yarn. But as I got about ten rows from finishing, I ran out of yarn and realized the hat was way too big. So, with only 2 days before my vacation, I had to reknit the whole thing. Luckily, it was just a hat, so I finished it on Thursday night before I was set to leave early Saturday morning.

My best friend (Left) and Me (Right) on the plane to Florida. You can kinda see that I'm wearing the beret

Here's a picture of me wearing the hat at the conference, taken by one of the photographers there.

You can imagine my surprise when at the first session, the pictures scrolling through the screen landed on this one of me! The photographer loved my hat and my owl bag, so I shouldn't have been surprised that she took a picture of me.

Back to knitting!

Wee Blankets

2011-05-18T21:03:00.003-07:00

I find myself needing to make a bunch of blankets for all the wee babes coming into the lives of my friends. Right now, I have 1 blanket on the needles and 4 more in the queue waiting to be made. If one more person finds out she is pregnant, I think I'll have a yarny meltdown! Not that I don't love making things for babies, because I do, it's one of my favorite things, I just don't like the feeling of being rushed because all these babies are being born so close together.

Fish Ripple

from "Comfort Knitting and Crochet: Afghans"
Baby Bee yarn in Yellow and Rainbow
Size F hook
Made 2 panels per pattern (since I used smaller hook and thinner yarn)
then crocheted together
1 round of single crochet for edging

I've never been one to make traditional pastel-colored baby blankets. I'm always big on bold colors, fun patterns and interesting textures. Take my most recent gift, for instance. Bright sunshiny yellow, since the parents waited to find out the gender until he made his debut into the world. I used a rainbow color for the border, making the blanket in two panels that were then crocheted together, so there's a fun stripe of color down the middle. Lucky for me, the blanket ended up matching the nursery exactly, so that always makes me super happy!
Back to knitting!

Down to Business

2011-05-09T17:13:00.003-07:00

So this will be my second Monday working in an office. That's right, I am now a secretary (or to be more PC, an Administrative Assistant) for my church. I'm so excited to have this job because it means that I'm finally out of retail and I'm finally able to work somewhere I love, doing what I love to do.

I'm actually posting this from my work computer (isn't that cool to say? I think it is...) because I've been house-/dog-sitting for the past few days and haven't had internet access except at work. Luckily the house I'm staying at is equipped with Netflix and is located less than 5 minutes away from my church, so thanks to hour-long lunch breaks and sequestering myself over the weekend, I was able to get a head start on my new long-term spinning project.
The other long-term project I'm starting right now also involves my handspun, but this time I'm knitting yarn instead of making it! I'm going to be using my recently finished Baltic Blue lace yarn to knit a Shipwreck shawl. This will be my first time making a circular shawl, and so far it's been smooth sailing. Especially since I have a new reading device that I can store all my patterns on instead of having to print them out. Brilliant!

Back to spinning!

On the Wheel, On My Heart

2011-04-20T15:36:00.006-07:00

Today marks the 2 year anniversary of my sister Heather's death. It's been over a month since I've done any spinning. Yesterday as I was getting antsy for the arrival of today, I felt like I just needed to get on the wheel. Nothing seemed more appropriate to spin than some red fiber I had waiting to be spun and knit into a Red Rose beret.
Heather loved the color red and she wore it well. Whenever I see red, I think of her red lipstick, her red nails like Grandma, the red dress she wore to the last singles' banquet at church, her red shoes, red roses she loved to buy for herself, and the list goes on and on. She would have loved this hat I'm going to make, and if she was still here, I probably would have been spinning this yarn to make it for her.
So today I have red merino blended with some sparkly firestar on the wheel. On my heart, I have the precious memories of my sister and the unending ache reminding me that she is gone.

Back to spinning!

Anna's Shawl

2011-04-13T13:40:00.006-07:00

A few months ago my friend Anna was going through a hard time. Being the knitter/crocheter that I am, I always feel the need to make a "comforting" gift when I see my friends hurting. It's a way for me to express my love and concern, and I usually spend the time praying for them while I'm making their gift. And that was how my new crochet shawl design was born!

Introducing Anna's Shawl!

Now available as a free download

Download Now
(Ravelry link here)
Approx. 700 yards of yarn
Size I crochet hook
Techniques include increasing, chain spaces, V-stitch

This new shawl also represents a new design adventure I'll be taking on this year. I love to knit shawls, but sometimes only crochet will do; however, it's hard to find as many modern patterns for crocheted shawls as there are for knit ones. I hope to remedy that!

Make Anna's Shawl for yourself or someone who needs a little bit of comfort in her life! Since this beauty now lives in New Mexico, I think I need to make some more too!

A Picture of an Artist

2011-04-05T23:10:00.005-07:00

Not much knitting/crocheting/spinning has been getting done around here, due to a few weeks of a hectic work schedule, and it's killing me! As much as I appreciate my source of income, I definitely do not appreciate having to work for it! Ha. For now I just dream about the day when my art is my sole source of income.

This month is a hard one for me. 3 years ago my sister Heather was diagnosed with cancer. 2 years ago she died. I don't know how I would have gotten through all that if not for God, my family and friends, and my art. Writing, crafting, these are the things that allow me to express all the emotions I keep bottled up inside; it's what keeps me functioning, alive.
Today I went and donated 11 inches of my hair to Locks of Love. I'd been growing my hair out for 3 years now, so it seemed right to do it in April again. The new 'do is definitely a hit!

Now that the craziness has calmed down, this artist should be getting back to work on the things she likes to do best! Back to knitting!

Just a Picture

2011-03-15T22:47:00.002-07:00

Straight Granny

2011-02-28T22:32:00.007-07:00

The first free pattern I ever posted on my blog was the Straight Granny. Having crocheted for numerous years, I had come up with my own formula for the traditional square granny, but sometimes the square shape seemed awkward for a blanket. So I came up with a recipe to make a straight granny square.
It's been years since I made the first blanket for the design, until just recently when I needed a quick baby blanket and didn't want to make another square granny. Why not use my own pattern, silly, and make a straight one?
Using this again after so long, I decided to revamp the pattern and offer it in PDF format for free. It's now sized for a baby blanket, with instructions for sizing to any desirable width and length. Click on the link below to download. You can also link to Straight Granny on Ravelry here.

Download Straight Granny Now

Lime and Grey

2011-02-26T15:07:00.005-07:00

A few weeks ago I made some new fingerless mittens. I had been itching to cast on about a dozen pairs, but settled for just one since mittens aren't entirely necessary here in February, when it only gets down as cold as in the 40s. My hands are extremely sensitive to the cold, however, so I take any excuse I can get to wear hand-coverings.

Camilla by SpillyJane Knits
Fingerless Mitts
Lime yarn: Brown Sheep Wildefoote Sock Yarn
Grey yarn: Patons Kroy Sock yarn
Less than a skein of each color
US Size 1 Needles (dpns)
Mods include: Shortening the top for my stubby hands

I've worn these at least 10 times since I finished them. They are the perfect accessory with any of my coats, since only a little bit of the color peeks out.
I had had the lime green yarn for a few years now and couldn't ever seem to find the right pattern to use it for. As I was digging through my stash for a complimentary color to go with it, I came across this one lonely skein of greyish yarn. I held the two together, and it was a perfect, albeit unusual match. The grey toned down the lime enough to not seem like I'm wearing a neon sign on my hands!

Back to knitting!

Download Free Pattern!

2011-02-09T21:45:00.008-07:00

A few years ago I posted my Penelope Scarf pattern on my blog. Recently I've decided to go back through all of my free patterns and offer them in pdf format on Ravelry to make it easier to print off the pattern (Ravelry link for Penelope Scarf). So here is the link for the Penelope Scarf pdf file, available to everyone!

Download Penelope Scarf Now

Winter

2011-02-03T14:20:00.006-07:00

Yesterday and today have been two of the coldest days of the season. It's been a nice change to actually be able to wear sweaters and mittens and wool socks, and not feel like an outcast, crazy knitter for doing so! Last weekend I got the urge to make a bunch of mittens, so I started working on a new pair. Then I watched the weather forecast and found out I'd actually be able to wear them this week! A knitter's delight!
Another knitter's delight is this shawl I just got done making the end of last year. This is the biggest shawl I've made, and it used the most yarn, the smallest needles, and took the longest time to make out of all the other ones I've made. I love the combination of the yarn and the pattern, because it just makes me think of a frosty winter day.

Anthemion

Knit Picks Shimmer Gloss Hand painted yarn
in color "Hyacinth"
Alpaca/silk, 3 skeins, 1320 yards

US Size 3 needlesIt definitely was a challenge to find a good pattern to pair with this variegated yarn. I've come to realize that solid yarns are preferable for lace, but this yarn was a gift from my parents for Christmas a few years ago, so I still wanted to make something special with it. Luckily I found a pattern that used "chevron" type motifs, which I figured would be perfect for showcasing the yarn and still showcase a great pattern.

I didn't think I would have enough floor space in my room to block this mammoth! I don't have an exact measurement for the shawl, but it's over 6 feet long! That would seem like too big of a shawl for me (I'm only five foot tall), but it actually is better being longer. I like to wear rectangular shawls wrapped where the two ends drape over either side of the same shoulder, in order to show off the main intricacy of patterning at both ends. And thanks to the fiber content, something so light and airy is also very warm!

Now I'm in the mood to wear this beauty again! Thank you, cold weather, for the oppportunity.

Back to crocheting!

Wednesdays are for Spinning

2011-01-26T15:01:00.004-07:00

Despite my recent obsession with spinning posts on the blog, I don't get as much time with my wheel as you think, which is due in part to the fact that my almost-two-year-old niece Violet has a tendency to want to touch my wheel while I'm spinning. Little fingers and spinning wheels do not mix. So Wednesdays have become my new day to devote to spinning since little Vi goes away for the day.

(The fiber pre-spun)

My latest finished yarn is the Alpaca/Silk blend I've mentioned before, which I call "Haiku." This was my first attempt at lace weight, and now I am in love! Lace is one of my favorite things to knit, so it's only natural that it's become one of my favorite yarn weights to spin.

Haiku

4 ounces
80% Alpaca, 20% Silk
2 ply, 32 WPI
648 yards

I already have plans to make this into a Miralda triangle shawl (Ravelry link). And it didn't take very long for me to start my next lace spinning project (maybe two days). So now it's time for me to go get on the wheel so I can turn this lovely stuff into lovely yarn!
Back to spinning!

A Whimsical Little Knit

2011-01-20T12:28:00.004-07:00

I finally got a chance to use my own handspun in a project for the first time. It definitely taught me a lot about what I need to do to improve my spinning techniques, mainly, focus on not underplying, which was the case for the Oatmeal yarn. Luckily my more recently spun yarns have been better, so now I need to knit with them to see how I'm doing.

Over Christmas I was lucky enough to get a signed copy of Whimsical Little Knits 2 from Ysolda Teague. I had been drooling over the patterns in this book, so when she offered signed copies for sale on her website over the holidays, I snatched one up! I plan to eventually make every pattern in this wee book, but here's my first finished project:

Damson by Ysolda Teague

US size 7 needles
Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool in Natural,
half a skein for garter stitch portion
Oatmeal Handspun yarn, 332 yards
Modifications include: going up a needle size,
adding an extra edging repeat

Because of my color choices, this shawl came out to have a very vintage look to it. To show it off to it's best potential, I just kept it simple and closed it with an Owl pin in the front when I wore it this past Sunday to church. Wearing pinned shawls over solid color shirts, jeans and little flat shoes has become my new favorite attire. The other night my parents asked me how many shawls I was going to make and my reply was, "until I have one in every color to go with every outfit!"

Back to spinning!

Haiku

2011-01-11T11:23:00.001-07:00

Fiber through fingers,
whirling wheel noises voice
a new love language;

Speak not of fear or
doubt, let hands do what they were
made to do: relax.

Release to the world
its own worries; burdens lift
as fresh yarn is born.

New Year, New Yarn

2011-01-04T16:12:00.007-07:00

Since I've just started spinning in the last few months, I thought it would be fun to devote this year to producing more of my own handspun. My fiber stash has already outgrown its designated bin, so I need to be more diligent with doing the actual spinning!
My most recently finished yarn was back in October. I had 4 ounces of Merino in a light green/vareigated and 4 ounces in a solid dark green. I spun each color separate, then plied them together to make a 2 ply yarn.
I ended up with some of the light green leftover, so I got to try Navajo plying for the first time. The great thing about Navajo plying (aka chain plying) is that you can ply with only a single strand, and it turns it into a 3 ply yarn.

Green Gables

100% Merino Wool
2 skeins of 2 ply, 1 skein of Navajo ply
472 yards total (402, 70 respectively)
approximately fingering weight

I call the yarn "Green Gables," because I had just recently watched the Anne of Green Gables/Avonlea series, and this yarn reminded me of the lush green scenery throughout the movies. It's hard to find colors like these in the desert!
Now I'm working on spinning up an 80% Alpaca/20% Silk blend that is absolutely heavenly to spin! It's so easy to work with, and so far I'm happy with the results. This yarn will be a laceweight, so even though I've only got 4 ounces to spin up, it's been taking forever. Luckily my technique is improving with each yarn, so I'm looking forward to seeing the finished results.

Back to spinning!

Sweater Frenzy

2010-12-23T21:01:00.003-07:00

Two weeks ago I decided at the last minute that I wanted to make all my girls gifts for Christmas. I already had a bunch of scarves and hats from year's past to give to a few friends, but I didn't have enough to give to all. So I wrote out my list of names and began whipping out more scarves and hats. In the end I had 19 gifts to hand out on Sunday at church, 4 projects which were completed in the previous 36 hours! Boy were my hands tired from all that knitting!
So this week, I have no gift-knitting left to do, but I am working my fingers off trying to finish a Christmas sweater. I had started this project at the beginning of December to hopefully finish in time for a Christmas party on Sunday, but when my last minute gift-making took up all my time, I decided to put it away to finish for Christmas Day instead. Unfortunately, I worked more hours this week than I was anticipating, so now it's a race to see if I'll finish it in time. I have a sleeve and a half left to make, then all the finishing and blocking, and only 24 hours to do it in. Hopefully it will be a Christmas miracle!

Joyful knitting, peaceful spinning, happy crocheting, and Merry Christmas!

Sweater Fever

2010-12-06T19:21:00.003-07:00

Just in time for the premiere of Deathly Hallows, I finished this "charming" sweater in Ravenclaw colors. The blue was souvenir yarn from Iowa when my parents visited there a few years ago. I knew that it would become a pullover, but just never found the right pattern. And then the book "Charmed Knits" came out with a replica of one of Ron's handmade "jumpers" (jumper=the British English word for "sweater") from the fourth movie that I knew would be a perfect pattern for this yarn!

Ravenclaw Ragg
Pattern: Ron's Ragg Raglan from "Charmed Knits"
US Size 8 needles
Yarn: Bernat Denim Style in Navy (4 skeins) and Grey (2 skeins)
4 Metal buttons from Joann's

Unfortunately, when I went to start this sweater a few weeks ago, I realized that I didn't have quite enough yarn. So I came up with the brilliant idea to use a different colors for the sleeves, and viola, problem solved, right? Wrong. I failed to realize after I was halfway done with the sweater that I was working it in one piece in the round, and that using a different color for the sleeves would require intarsia. Intarsia?!?! To put it mildly, I dislike intarsia, so I didn't relish the fact that in order to finish the sweater the way I wanted to would require this technique.
Luckily, it only lasted a few days and the tangled mess turned out to be a sweater I love! I modified it to only have an opening on one side, and the metal buttons add a touch of extra charm. And yes, it's as comfy as it looks! When I wore it, I wanted to curl up in a corner and read a book; a true Ravenclaw sweater! Instead, I watched the midnight showing of Deathly Hallows, which is a good second choice.

Can you guess what I'm working on right now? Yup, another sweater!

Back to (sweater) knitting!

Sweater Weather

2010-11-20T20:21:00.003-07:00

Over the summer, I managed to finish a sweater that I had started at the end of last spring. This was my first attempt at converting a sweater made flat to a sweater made in the round. And like every time I make a sweater, I was afraid that this one wouldn't fit. But thanks to a wonderful thing called wool, a little bath revealed a perfect fit.

Penny Cardi
Vogue Knitting Fall 2008 (ravelry link)
Patons Classic Merino Wool "Paprika"
US Size 5 needles
Buttons handmade by Kathy Canuel

In past years, I have been prone to stay away from anything that wasn't primary or pastel; but lately, I've been drawn to natural fibers and tones, and my new favorite is this burnt orange color, or as Paton calls it, "Paprika." It's orange without being road-cone orange.
Another modification I made to this sweater was to add the coin-cables down each sleeve and a panel on the back. If I was going to go to through all the work of making a "cabled" sweater, I didn't want to just stop with the two panels on the front. In my opinion, adding the extra cables makes this sweater that much better!

And thanks to a cold front, I'll probably be wearing this sweater this next week, possibly for Thanksgiving. Happy Turkey Day!

Back to knitting!

Falling Leaves

2010-10-29T16:55:00.004-07:00

It's finally Fall, and finally Fall weather here in Arizona. Unfortunately, we don't really experience the changing and falling of the leaves, so I found myself imitating that phenomenon in places where there are actual trees in my knitting.

Pattern: Lilac Leaf Shawl from the book "Knitted Lace of Estonia"
Yarn: 550 yards of Conjoined Creations Pastimes, 100% soysilk
Needles: US size 5

This shawl was my first experience with soysilk yarn, which was gifted to me by a fellow knitter, and I have to say that it's not my favorite. It's very shiny, which is great for lace, but also very slippery. The slippery factor was okay as far as the knitting, but when I wore it, I felt like I couldn't keep it in place or keep the shape the way I wanted it to be. It's beautiful though, so I guess that's all that matters!
I loved this pattern, but I did omit the nupps, because I hate the little blighters. They seem a little pointless to me because I have another lace shawl that had nupps on it, and now the little things are flattened after a few wears. Kinda ruins the point of having something 3-dimensional if they just flattened out. I also ran out of yarn towards the end, so had to skimp on the ending border, but it's barely noticeable to anyone other than me, and not a big deal since a lot of lace patterns don't always have matching borders for rectangular shawls. All in all, I'd say my first rectangular lace shawl was a success!

Happy Fall!

Back to knitting!

Sometimes you just need a wheel...

2010-10-05T17:33:00.005-07:00

Last Monday, ten minutes before I had to be at work, my Kromski Sonata spinning wheel arrived at my front door. I had just enough time to pull everything out of the box, and then assembled it later when I got home from work. I spent a good part of last week spinning 4 ounces worth of wool, then plying it into a final skein of yarn. Making yarn takes so many hours, I had no idea!
I have come to the conclusion that I love my wheel! Making yarn on it really goes much faster than a spindle, so I have named my wheel "Soren." (That's also the name of the main owl character in a new series of books I'm reading, so it seemed appropriate!)
The silver spun up a little bit thicker than the natural color, so I have some natural leftover that I'll probably ply with the remainder lavender I had leftover from the Peekaboo Purple yarn. My techniques have improved so much in just the first week of having my wheel, and I can definitely tell that I'm a wheel girl. I'll probably never go back to a spindle, but that's just my personal preference.

"Oatmeal"

4 ounces of Merino Fleece
Natural and Silver
2 ply
332 yards
approximately Fingering Weight

I was so pleased to get over 332 yards of yarn out of the 4 ounces of fleece, so I'll have enough to make a nice little shawl. This yarn is so cozy, so I can't wait to knit with it!

Unfortunately, I worked a 9 hour shift at work on Friday, after I spent over 3 hours spinning the day before, so I had to give my ankles a few days' break. I'm hoping to get back on the wheel by the end of the week. And a new fiber purchase may or may not be headed to my house soon...

Back to knitting!

Miss Priss Collection

2010-09-28T22:52:00.002-07:00

For a great low price you can get the entire Miss Priss Pattern Collection now available at Kounting Sheep Designs! This collection includes these four patterns: Miss Priss Hat, Lil Miss Priss Hats, Miss Priss Scarf and Miss Priss Bag.

Available at Kounting Sheep Designs for only $12! Or click the link "buy now" to purchase.

Miss Priss Collection

2010-09-28T22:47:00.002-07:00

Peek-A-Boo

2010-09-21T22:10:00.003-07:00

I'm proud to show off my second skein of handspun. This yarn actually better resembles yarn than the first one I made. The dark plum color was my first wheel-spun single and the lavender was my first completed spindle-spun single. Because the plum was spun at a larger gauge than the lavender, it created a "peek-a-boo" effect when I plied the two together, hence the name for this yarn "PeekaBoo Purple."
This yarn came out to be about 60 yards, which just might be enough for me to make an Urchin. I've always wanted to make this beret using a very unique yarn, but never found one that was unique enough. I guess I had to make my own in order to find just the right one!

Back to knitting!

PS> I bought my first spinning wheel! It should be here in about a week, so I'll post pictures as soon as it gets here!

Handspun

2010-08-31T21:23:00.003-07:00

Yes, you read that post title right, I've finally entered the world of handspun yarn! I've been wanting to get into handspinning for a long time now, after seeing so many knitters create beautiful, one-of-a-kind yarns, but didn't have the money to buy a spinning wheel. Then a few weeks ago, I found out that you can spin your own yarn without a spinning wheel, using a small device called a "spindle." It's basically a hand-held wooden dowel with a round piece and a hook attached, weighing anywhere from half an ounce to 3 ounces. The lighter the spindle, the thinner the yarn you can create.
I was able to acquire two spindles (one top whorl, one bottom whorl), some fiber and a getting started book from someone on Ravelry a few weeks ago and started trying to figure it out. Of course, I was making it a lot harder than it actually is in the beginning, and after a forage for YouTube videos and countless hours of scouring the web, I started to figure out how to use the thing. Or so I thought.

My first yarn turned out okay. I had the basic mechanics down, but I still needed to learn the finer techniques. My first yarn came out to be a very uneven, slubby, glorious 11 yards, which barely made a cowl when supplemented with another yarn. But I'm still very proud of it!
Then I went to visit my friend who got me kick-started into spinning who was able to borrow a wheel for us to practice on. Thank goodness for her because I was much more lost than I thought! After showing me better techniques on how to prepare the fiber for spinning, called drafting, I have become much better on the spindle, as you can see in the picture below:
And, and, I was able to try out the wheel. One word: LOVE! I'm in love with the wheel, which I had no doubt would happen, so I'm saving up every dime I can in order to buy one. I have my eye on a nice, portable, folding that will be more practical for someone with tight living quarters (if you can call a spinning wheel practical, that is, but I digress).
So now, not only will I have a yarn stash, but I will have a fiber stash as well!

Back to knitting! And crocheting. And spinning!

Sometimes you just need a little nonsense...

2010-08-17T17:52:00.003-07:00

"There was a large mushroom growing near her, about the same height as herself; and, when she had looked under it, and on both sides of it, and behind it, it occurred to her that she might as well look and see what was on top of it.

[Alice] stretched herself up on tiptoe, and peeped over the edge of the mushroom, and her eyes immediately met those of a large blue caterpillar, that was sitting on the top, with its arms folded, quietly smoking a hookah, and taking not the smallest notice of her or of anything else."

(From Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll)

Summer of Socks

2010-08-06T15:31:00.007-07:00

At the beginning of the year I decided to challenge myself to attempt using up all of my sock stash. Unfortunately, I don't think I'm going to be able to reach that goal, but thanks to summer I've definitely made a good dent.

I actually didn't make my first pair of socks for the year until Mother's Day. Since then, I have made 5 additional pairs of socks--4 for me, and a pair for my dad. So here's a look at my new socks, even thought the pictures don't do them justice:

Dad's Socks

Modified "Argyle" Socks from book Toe Up Socks for Every Body
Red Heart Ltd "Heart & Sole" sock yarn; 2 skeins navy

Coral Pair: "Diamonds and Cables" from book Toe Up Socks for Every Body
Universal "Pace Step" sock yarn; 2 skeins coral
Striped Pair: "Victory" from book Toe Up Socks for Every Body
Patons "Kroy Sock" yarn; 2 skeins Mulberry Stripes
Purple Pair: 2x2 cable ribbed pattern, basic sock recipe
Cascade "Fixation" yarn; 2 skeins purple and Knitpicks "Felici" scraps for cuff

Nutkin Socks
(pattern modified for toe-up)
Lion Brand "Sock-Ease" yarn; half skein of Lemon Drop
I loved this pattern and would make it again!

All of these socks, with the exception of the purple pair, used the Toe-Up and 2 at a Time methods on a Size 1 40 inch long circular needle. I've now mastered this technique and I don't think I'll ever be able to go back to making socks any other way! It's a much more efficient way to make socks, and I'm all about efficiency. Anything that makes those handknit socks appear quicker on my feet! The other lovely thing about 4 pairs of socks being added to my sock drawer in the middle of summer is the fact that I now work a job where I can wear them, despite it being 100+ degrees outside. I've already worn 2 pairs to my first week of work! Yay!

Back to knitting!

Have Your Cake, And Eat It Too!

2010-07-26T13:41:00.004-07:00

This was my celebratory cake that I ate after I found out that I got a job at a bank as a Teller! I'm so excited about this new job, even if it's bittersweet to leave Michaels Craft Store, where I've worked for over three years. New phases are always exciting and scary at the same time.
There may have been some celebratory yarn purchase as well, but I'm declining to admit it with pictorial proof. *wink, wink*

Back to knitting!

Christmas and Log Cabins

2010-07-19T11:33:00.003-07:00

Wouldn't it be nice to be tucked away in a cozy log cabin somewhere in the snow-covered mountains, with a crackling fire, a mug of hot chocolate, and a cozy blanket? Yeah, instead it's July, which feels like being in a fire or a hot beverage or under a heavy blanket every time I step outside. So making this knit Log Cabin blanket last month definitely wasn't fun as far as the temperature goes, but fun as far as the knitting goes!

Pattern: Mason Dixon How To Log Cabin

Yarn: Red Heart Holiday
in colors Antique Red, Green, and Multi
Red Heart Super Saver in creme
Needles: US Size 10
Finished Size: Approx. 58 inches square

This was a belated birthday present for a friend who loves Christmas, red and green, year-round! Although getting a gift of a blanket in June is not on everyone's wishlist, I know she will appreciate this cozy lap blanket once the temps do finally cool off.

Why is it I always seem to spend the hottest months making afghans?

Back to crocheting!

Knitting Mochimochi

2010-07-09T15:46:00.004-07:00

Over a year ago, my designer friend Anna of Mochimochi Land asked me to help test knit a pattern for a book project she was working on and provide feedback for one of the designs. I was so excited to see sneak peeks and glimpse of her book along the way, and now it's finally here! Knitting Mochimochi!
Anna was nice enough to send me a signed copy for helping her test knit, so mine arrived in the mail yesterday.
The pattern I tested was for "Grouchy Couch." This pattern was actually a one-of-a-kind piece that she had made, and due to overwhelming response for the pattern, she ended up including it in her book. From the first time I saw Grouchy, I knew I had to do this pattern, so when I saw it as an option for testing, I responding immediately.
This was a fun and challenging project to complete. For my piece, I decided to leave the cushions off, due to the fact that I was over my finishing deadline, and also because I think I overstuffed my piece a bit. I still think it turned out great, and I have some tiny object sitting on this couch on my knitting book shelf.
Being a huge fan of Anna's over the years and being privileged to test knit for her on a regular basis, it's hard for me to find one favorite pattern in her new book. So here are a few:

The photography in this book is great, as are the patterns. The whole layout of the book works well together, and the extra info about how to make toys and design your own add that extra special touch to this book. I can't wait to make more Mochimochi toys!
Back to crocheting!

Summer Blues

2010-07-01T23:34:00.005-07:00

Today's temperature reached 115 degrees where I live, and by any standards, that's just plain HOT! Just because I live in Arizona doesn't mean I actually like the heat here. In fact, quite the contrary. I would rather live in a colder climate, as evidenced by my obsession with knits and crochets, but we don't always get to choose where we live, do we?
I could tell I was getting a really bad case of the summer blues when I started the month of June knitting these items:
A lace beret and matching fingerless mitt set. Not really a necessity for June, but I couldn't resist making these cute patterns. I needed reassurance that yes, the cold will come back in a few months, and then I'll be able to wear stuff like this.

Pattern: Looking Glass Lace Beret

from Vogue Knitting Holiday 2009
Yarn: Cleckheaton Country 8 ply in navy and light blue;
Lion Brand Wool in Dark Teal
Needles: US Size 3

Pattern: Susie's Reading Mitts

Yarn: Cleckheaton Country 8 ply in navy, light blue and teal
Needles: US Size 4

My favorite part is the picot edgings on both ends of these mitts. It made a simple pattern more interesting and feminine just by adding this simple detail. And because of the lace pattern being focused only at the top and bottom, it allowed me to take a risk on using different colors. I only had a small amount of each color, enough all together for a pair, but not enough of one color alone to finish. I love when risks pay off!

As a break from the heat, I'll be going to San Diego this weekend for a little vacation and to attend a conference that my church is involved with. I'm looking forward to the highs only reaching about 70 degrees. It was weird to pack jeans and sweatshirts today in preparation for my trip. And to think that it might actually be too cold to swim in the ocean while I'm there!
If you don't hear from me ever again, you'll know where I am! *wink, wink*

Back to knitting!

Pretty in Pink

2010-06-25T19:51:00.007-07:00

It's not very often that I get pictures of the recipients wearing the things I've made for them. So when my friends welcomed their new baby girl and shared this picture of her wearing the baby bear hat I knit for her, I just had to have a copy. This was one of the smallest hats I've ever made, and since this little girl was born early, it was a perfect match!

I also made this crocheted blanket to go with the hat. It's one of my new favorite baby blanket patterns. I just love it!

Pattern: Spider Web Blanket from the book Our Best Baby Afghans
[weird pattern name, lovely pattern!]
with modified simple ruffle edging
Yarn: Snowflake (Hobby Lobby); Acrylic/Wool Blend
in colors Creamsicle and Primrose
Hook: Size H

Here's the proud mama at her baby shower opening up the blanket just shortly before baby's arrival. Congrats, friend, on your sweet baby girl!

Back to knitting!

Comforting

2010-06-16T21:22:00.005-07:00

When I found out that Heather's best friend was going through the same loss as myself with the death of her brother, I knew I had to make her a shawl. I don't know why it had to be a shawl, but I knew I had to make it. I already knew the pattern I wanted to use, and I got started right away.

Pattern: Feather and Fan Triangle Shawl

from the book Folk Shawls by Cheryl Oberle,
minus the feather and fan patterning
(like this one here [scroll down to entry for 25 Feb 2009] and here)
Yarn: Patons Classic Merino Wool
3 skeins lavender, 1.5 skeins royal purple
Needles: US Size 8

I altered the original pattern that included a traditional Feather and Fan pattern into a more simple garter stitch and plain ruffle border. The effect is quite calming, and even this most simple of knit stitches still makes the shawl look stunning.

The what seemed like endless miles and miles of garter stitch (knit every stitch, every row) was some how comforting to me, even though it's been over a year since my sister died. The comfort I felt in making this shawl I hoped would pass along to the recipient in some small way.

Simplicity is the key to beauty sometimes.

Back to knitting!

Slice of Summer

2010-06-02T22:27:00.006-07:00

Although the calendar doesn't say that it's officially summer yet, last week we hit the triple digits here in Arizona, which means that summer is well under way in our books. Luckily the weekend cooled off just a little bit, so I was able to wear this beauty to church on Sunday (air conditioning is wonderful for wearing summery hand-knits inside that would otherwise be useless in Arizona).

Pattern: Citron

Yarn: The Periwinkle Sheep Watercolors Merino Sport
in color "Avocado"
Needles: US Size 6

This pattern was simple, easy-to-follow, quick and produced a finished project that has a nice understated beauty.
I only had 400 yards of yarn, which was a little less than the pattern, so I shortened it a bit by leaving off the last repeat and shortening the ruffle. It turned out a great size, just enough to drape over the tops of my shoulders and just enough to be fastened with a pin at my neck. During the winter I'll be able to bundle it up around my neck to look like a cozy green cowl.

Back to knitting!

New Item and Pattern: LaLa Earrings!

2010-05-25T15:14:00.005-07:00

Introducing the newest item to Kounting Sheep Designs: LaLa Earrings! Little crocheted earrings for when you need to add a little "lalala" to your wardrobe!

One of a kind, original hand-crocheted LaLa earrings are now for sale in my etsy shop for $6, plus the cost of shipping.

My original design is available in pattern form in my etsy shop and on Ravelry for $1.99!

PS>Check the shop for new lower prices on other older patterns, now also $1.99!

Heart to Heart

2010-05-18T17:42:00.006-07:00

To continue the sock theme, here are the ones I made for my mom for Mother's Day.

Pattern: Heart to Heart Socks from the book

Toe Up Socks for Every Body
Yarn: Wisdom "Endurance" Sock Yarn
Needles: US Size 1, long circular for Magic Loop Method

I really enjoyed knitting these for several reasons, the first being that I love to make things for other people, especially when I live with those people, so then I have to plan time to work in secret.
Secondly, this was my first time using both the Magic Loop Method and the toe-up method. Usually I work socks from the cuff down, which makes it difficult to guess how much yarn the sock will use. With toe-up, you don't have to worry as much about running out of yarn because it's more predictable.
The Magic Loop Method was something I tried when I first started knitting socks, but could not get the hang of it. I decided to try it again, and voila, it clicked! I have yet to try two socks at a time on Magic Loop, so we'll see how that goes when I try it out in the next few days. (See here for a basic description of Magic Loop.)
And third, this was the most complicated lace/cable pattern I have made on socks before. I've done things much harder on a larger scale, but wasn't sure if I was up for putting the time into an intricate pattern on something that goes on someone's feet, but surprisingly it didn't slow down the process that much or make it less enjoyable. In fact, it made it more interesting to work the sock.
So overall, I'm very happy with how these came out, and my mom liked them too. Too bad it's too hot to even contemplate wearing them! Loved the pattern (love the whole book, highly recommend), and I look forward to making more socks this summer!

Back to crocheting!

Sock (Yarn) Monkey

2010-05-06T16:20:00.003-07:00

What do you get when you mix a little bit of leftover sock yarn, size 1 dpn sock needles, a funky monkey pattern, and a few extra hours?

A little sock yarn monkey!
I've been wanting to make this pattern for a long time but just haven't gotten around to it. Yesterday afternoon I was kinda "trapped" in my room, waiting for the freshly cleaned carpets in the house to dry, so it was just easier for me to stay in my room and knit. My current project was downstairs, so I decided to work on this monkey instead.

This was such a fun little clever knit that only required minimal seaming. The legs, tail and mouth were all worked on the body using waste yarn holders that you then unpick to work those sections after working the main body. You can get the pattern for the Funky Sock Monkey here.

Back to crocheting!

Socks Finally!

2010-05-03T18:55:00.003-07:00

I'm finally making socks! At the beginning of the year I decided I wanted to try and use up my whole sock yarn stash. Unfortunately, I haven't been doing much sock knitting. For my birthday my friends gave me a gift card to Barnes and Noble, so I got this book:
Toe-Up Socks for Every Body.

I've only ever made socks from the cuff down, and I've been wanting to try the toe-up technique. So I gave it a try:
I really like making socks this way so far. And the benefit of doing them toe-up is that if you have two balls of yarn, you can use all of the yarn possible without having to guess how much is enough to finish the sock. The leg ends up being the last part you knit, so you can keep knitting til it's the length you want or you run out of yarn.

So Summer of Socks, here I come!

Back to knitting!

Baby Season

2010-04-22T13:54:00.007-07:00

I know so many pregnant women right now! It's crazy...last year was the year of weddings, so this year has been the year of babies. Funny how that happens...

I'm working on two baby blankets right now, one knit and one crochet. Obviously, I can't say anymore about them since they aren't finished and therefore, haven't reached their intended recipients. But I can say that they are both very cute and I'm enjoying the patterns and yarns (like I had any doubt that a baby blanket I make wouldn't be cute?).

I can, however, post about these blankets I made at the beginning of the year for my pastor's family. They just added a third baby girl to their bunch, so I decided that instead of just making one baby blanket, I'd make one for all three girls! I've become really fond lately of "sibling" gifts because 1) it's special for the other siblings who aren't receiving any gifts at the birth of a new brother/sister, and 2) it's a great way to use up extra stash yarn and try patterns I've been wanting to try.
I knit the baby's blanket using Lion Brand One Pound in a soft pink color and did a border in Vanna's Baby in a bright pink color. I like the contrast of the two pinks for this blanket and also how the brighter pink made it look more modern than just a traditional "baby pink."
For the older girls, I used the same pattern ("wattle stitch" in crochet), but different colors. I don't know them that well, so I let mom pick which blanket went to which girl.
After I gave them all the blankets, I heard that the older girls carried them around for a couple days. So cute! And I love seeing that the mom uses the baby's blanket as a stroller blanket all the time. Every time I see them at church, I see my blanket displayed on the top of the stroller.

It's always rewarding to see that the recipient isn't afraid to use my handmade gift!

Back to knitting!

Hoodlet Pattern Now In PDF Format!

2010-04-08T15:32:00.009-07:00

My first free pattern, published back in 2007 on my blog, is now available only in pdf format!

You can access it through Ravelry or click on the link below to get the downloadable pdf version of the Hoodlet. This version has been updated with a few changes to make finishing easier and the needle size more practical. Get the Hoodlet pattern for free:

Download Hoodlet Now

An Easter Verse

2010-04-04T08:28:00.004-07:00

"Since Christ was raised from the dead, He cannot die again;
death no longer has mastery over Him.
The death He died, He died to sin once for all;
but the life He lives, He lives to God...
For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 6:9-10, 23

PS> Check out this post from my dad.

Incompatible

2010-03-28T22:19:00.002-07:00

I bought some yarn yesterday on clearance to make a sweater. I was not planning to buy this yarn, nor to make this sweater that I picked out. It's also an unusual color for me to pick out for myself; it's called "paprika" and resembles the color of my Mango Snapple Shawl (which might explain why I picked the yarn since that's my favorite shawl ever). But I think what's most unusual about me making this sweater is the fact that summer's footsteps can be heard louder and louder every day. It's supposed to be spring, and instead it's 80 degrees. And I'm making a sweater that I won't be able to wear for another 7ish months.

The seasons and I are not compatible here in Arizona.

Back to knitting!

Because not everyone is a knitter

2010-03-10T18:21:00.002-07:00

I know, it's hard to believe, but not everyone in the world is a knitter. And not everyone who reads my blog is a knitter either. Like my dad.

So my dad came home from work today and the first thing he asked me was "what is that 'thing' you posted about on your blog? I don't know what it is..." Ha ha ha! I'm usually fairly good at explaining the things I make, but I totally forgot to do that on the post about my "Pretty Thing."

It's a cowl.

Now that may not help much for someone who is not a knitter, nor lives in a cold climate where you might encounter such an item. So a definition. A cowl is a neckwarmer. It's a scarf without being a scarf. It's a tube of knitting you wear around your neck to keep you warm. Most people wear them with their coats to keep their necks warm, or if you don't live in a cold place (like me) you can wear it on its own with a pretty pin or something. Sometimes a cowl is long enough to go all the way over your head like a hood. Sometimes they are just pretty, like Pretty Thing. For some reason, even though cowls have been around for a long time, they are really REALLY popular this winter, especially with knitters. Of course it's popular with knitters because it has the benefit of a scarf without the time-consuming knitting of a scarf.

The things you can learn when you hang out with a knitter!

Back to knitting! (I'm knitting mittens. Do you know what that is? Probably not if you live in Arizona...)

A Pretty Thing

2010-03-09T14:37:00.003-07:00

My second Ravelympics finisher was this:

Pretty Thing by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

I used a little over half a skein of Knitpicks Imagination Hand-paint Sock yarn in color "Looking Glass." I love how this turned out, and luckily it's been raining every weekend here, so that means I've been able to wear my pretty lace things on Sundays to church. This Pretty Thing made it's debut last Sunday, complete with a skeleton key pin ("Looking glass," key, get the picture?). It was perfect timing for the new version of "Alice in Wonderland" that came out this week. My mom and I went to the midnight showing, and I enjoyed the movie immensely. Perhaps I'll wear my Pretty Thing when I go see it a second time...

Back to knitting!

PS>This project finally used some sock yarn stash that I've been trying to (unsuccessfully) use up this year! Unfortunately it didn't use the whole skein...

Ene Shawl

2010-02-16T15:24:00.008-07:00

Here is my first finisher for this year's Ravelympics:
My beautiful Ene Shawl is finally finished! It only took me two days to do the last half of the shawl. Even though I've been technically working on this since October, it only took about a week's worth of knitting to complete. After a rough start and running out of yarn, I finally finished it and I will be able to wear it hopefully this weekend.

Before blocking:

During blocking:

Close-up details:
I love this pattern and I love how it turned out. I had just enough of the multi-colored Noro yarn to do the bottom border, and after ordering two additional skeins, I had more than enough to finish the main body of the shawl. I did, however, start the pattern with fewer stitches, so I did fewer chart repeats. After blocking, the shawl still ended up being larger than I expected, but just the right size for me.
More lace knitting to come...

Back to knitting!

Ravelympics 2010!

2010-02-12T12:37:00.003-07:00

Winter Olympics start today, so that can only mean one thing: Ravelympics start today too! Remember the Summer Olympics in 2008 when I did Ravelympics: here and here and here? Well, it's that time again!
I'm on Team Stashdown again, and I created this avatar for our team to show our coolness. It's fun to see a bunch of different people all sporting our same team logo. Good times.

This year I've decided to focus on lace. I was going to try to do just one large project, but I've decided to instead finish a lace WIP (the Ene Shawlette) and then make 3 other smaller lace projects (Citron, Springtime Bandit, and Pretty Thing) in the 17 days. Since the weather here is quickly moving from "it's almost cold enough to be called winter" to "it's too hot to be called spring, but it's not hot enough to be summer yet," it makes more sense to make smaller shawls that I can wear right now, rather than a big one I won't be able to wear until November or December (boo).

Now I just have to wait till 7pm tonight to pull out the Ene Shawl and officially start!

Back to knitting (no, not my competing project...)!

Crossing Over

2010-02-05T21:48:00.004-07:00

That's right, I've "crossed" over....to cross-stitch! Actually, I learned to cross-stitch when I was about ten years old, which was the craft that eventually led to my learning to crochet two years later. I kinda gave up on cross-stitch because I got tired of having to change the thread so often. But I decided to overcome my frustration with this little trait of that particular craft when I got the opportunity to test "stitch" this pattern: "Cute is Always in Season" from Mochimochi Land.
I had forgotten how long cross-stitch takes (it'll probably be awhile before I make another one!). This project took me about a month and a half to complete, working on it for several hours a day. This is the largest cross-stitch I have ever made, and I'm quite proud of this piece. My favorites are the owl (Oct), the rabbit (May), and the squirrel (Nov). The pattern was great and it's for sale over in the Mochimochi Land shop. Thanks, Anna, for giving me the opportunity to test this pattern!

Back to knitting!

New Pattern: Miss Priss Scarf!

2010-01-28T14:26:00.008-07:00

Introducing the Miss Priss Scarf Pattern on Sale NOW!!! Every hat needs a matching scarf, so that's how this scarf was born. Starting today and running until February 14th, you can get the Miss Priss Hat Pattern (adult) for FREE with a purchase of the Miss Priss Scarf Pattern! Both patterns will be sent to your email upon payment notification.

Don't miss your chance to get two patterns for the price of one! Check out Kounting Sheep Designs!

A Straggler and An Addition

2010-01-25T22:49:00.005-07:00

I have two more skeins of yarn to add to the sock yarn stash. One was a straggler that I forgot I had (first picture), because it's kept with the lace stash since that's the intended project, and one I got in the mail today as a free gift with a purchase of other yarn (the red one in the second picture).
I bought a sport weight merino yarn from The Periwinkle Sheep last week. The color is called "Avocado" and I plan to use it for a Citron shawl. Through the end of January, the seller is giving away free skeins of sock yarn with any purchase, so I thought I would take the opportunity to buy the yarn I wanted so I could get free yarn.
She chooses the color of the free yarn she sends, so it was a happy surprise to find this lovely skein of soft red sock yarn snuggled next to my avocado. I think it will become a lace shawl as well (too pretty to put on my feet!) but just have to find the right pattern.
This skein of yarn will become a Pretty Thing. The yarn is Imagination from Knitpicks, and is a beautiful alpaca. I have a thing against putting alpaca on my feet, because it's just too precious for my budget to rationalize making into socks. So this little skein of "Looking Glass" (Alice in Wonderland is one of my favorite books ever!) will become a lovely little pretty thing!

So now I have 619 yards to add to the sock yarn stash total, and so far, no yardage to subtract! ::Sigh::

Back to knitting!

Sock Yarn Stash

2010-01-16T21:56:00.002-07:00

This picture displays my entire sock yarn stash. Now, it may not look like a lot of yarn, but yardage-wise, it's quite a bit. And considering each color is one pair (or more, since I have small feet), that's quite a few socks. The nice thing about my goal of using up all of this is that I will turn sock yarn stash into just sock stash.

Actually, I forgot to mention that the six already-wound red skeins at the bottom of the picture are going to become a Pi Shawl (by Elizabeth Zimmerman), which is also my Ravelympics project during the Winter Olympics! So, that will make a bunch of socks and a round shawl! Yay!

I tallied it all up, and the yardage of the sock yarn stash comes out to 5628 yards or 3.2 miles. Not a lot for a person who used up 39,820 yards/22.6 miles of yarn for 2009 and 122 complete skeins of yarn. But I have yet to cast on for a single sock, and it's nearing the end of January...

Back to knitting!

Become a Fan

2010-01-10T17:13:00.002-07:00

Real quick: Become a fan of Kounting Sheep on Facebook! I set up a fan page for my blog/etsy shop a few weeks ago, and I've forgotten to mention it until now. So go here and click the button "become a fan" so you can see status updates on crafty things I'm doing, look at pictures of current and finished projects, and get updated on other things I'm up to. Feel free to leave comments on my page, too!

Back to crocheting!

Big Sock

2010-01-07T14:21:00.005-07:00

Yesterday was my 3 year blogiversary, and like last year, I missed it again! Oh well...so I've been doing this blog for 3 years. Yay! I was hoping to have a new pattern ready by this milestone, but alas, January has been just as busy as December as far as projects go. I did, however, take some time to go to my LYS, Tempe Yarn and Fiber, for the first time in probably a year or more. I was there for 2 hours just looking at all the new and different yarns, and trying to decide what to buy within my preset budget (I still ended up going a little bit over, but only by $5! now that's self-control). I had three specific projects in mind when I went, so I wouldn't be tempted to mindlessly buy as much yarn as possible. Although hard to resist, I only came home with enough yarn for the three projects I had in mind.

My other purpose for going to the yarn store was so I could knit on the World-Record-Setting "Big Sock" that is traveling around the globe being knit on by knitters everywhere. Back in 2006 this sock was started, and when it left Arizona last week, the "leg" of the sock had an additional 19 inches added to it! I got an opportunity to knit on the Big Sock for about half an hour while I was in the store on the second to last day it was there. It felt great to add my stitches to a project of this magnitude. You can see the journey that the "Big Sock" took at Tempe Yarn and Fiber at their blog here.

So in honor of the New Year and my blogivesary, and inspired by the "Big Sock," I've decided that my goal this year will be to use up my entire sock yarn stash. Now granted, this is probably my smallest stash within my yarn stash, but I wanted to set an attainable goal, and also have a bunch of socks when I'm done.

Back to knitting!

Coffee Break

2009-12-31T21:36:00.006-07:00

This is the last post of the year, so I thought I would post about the last minute gift I made at, well, the last minute. No matter how well I plan, I always end up making at least one gift at the last minute, usually in the week before Christmas, so of course this year wasn't any different. I needed a warm touch to go along with a bag of coffee I was giving to my co-worker, so a mug cozy was the perfect idea!
Using less than 100 yards of some leftover red multi-colored-speckled yarn and a size H crochet hook, I made this little thing in about an hour, including time to sew on the button. I did ten half-double crochets across to fit the height of the mug I was working with and then did as many rows as needed to cover the circumference of the cup. When I got to the handle, I centered four half-doubles in the middle and created a small, adjustable button band with three button holes. Viola! A quick and easy gift!

More posts to come about other things I made for Christmas!

Back to knitting!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-24T22:20:00.004-07:00

Guess what Santa brought me for Christmas this year? A yarn swift!!! I'm so excited, and I can't wait to use it with the ball winder I got two Christmases ago; it will definitely come in handy cause I have a bunch of yarn in hanks that need to be wound and the "over the knee" method is getting old. Yay for parents who shop from wishlists!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Bitten

2009-12-12T20:00:00.004-07:00

No, I haven't been bitten by any vampires lately. Just the Bella's Mitten bug.
It would be an understatement to say that I am in love with this pattern; it's beyond that--I'm absolutely SMITTEN with these mittens (ha ha, it rhymes!). I had forgotten that I wanted to make a pair of these when I first saw someone had written up a pattern for the mittens Bella Swan (actor Kristen Stewart) wears in the movie "Twilight." After going to a special double-feature of "Twilight" and "New Moon" the night the second one opened, I came out of the theater as a woman on a mission to get herself a pair of these dang cute mittens. I mean, how could I survive this absolutely frigid Arizona winter coldspell we've been having without a pair of these (that would be a high of 57 and a low of 35...frigid, I tell you, frigid!)!

Alas, since I've started furiously knitting this pattern, I have yet to make a pair for myself. But I'm okay with that because the pairs I am making are going to worthy recipients. The first pair were a birthday gift, which I converted to fingerless gloves, since my friend works in an office and has been able to get much use out of them while still being able to perform her job. The second pair, which remained full mittens, are in the possession of my sister. I'll have to wrangle them back from her in order to get a picture. And I have to make three more pairs before I make a pair for myself. Actually, make that two for myself because I'm doing a version of mittens and a version of fingerless.
I don't know what it is about the horseshoe cable, but I'm just smitten over it, probably because it just makes me feel so clever. Most of the time working stitches out of order can be problematic, but in the case of cables, beautiful, and in the case of horseshoe cable, which has two mirrored cables back-to-back, brilliant!

Ah, I love when knitting makes me feel clever!

Back to knitting (bet you can't guess which pattern...)!

A Precious Gift

2009-12-10T12:32:00.003-07:00

Today, December 10th, is my sister Heather's 22nd birthday. And today, my family celebrates alone because our precious Heather is in heaven. I don't know what to do today without her here, so I thought I would just post something about her.
I'm wearing a scarf right now that Heather knit for me several Christmases ago. I remember opening a shirt box to find a grey hoodie shirt and a pink striped scarf inside. I was surprised to see this particular scarf in my box, because I had seen her knitting it, and she had told me she was making it for my other sister. All along she had intended it for me, and I had no idea! It always reminds me of the Cheshire Cat from "Alice in Wonderland," one of my favorite books ever.

After that Christmas, I have worn the shirt and scarf together always. It was a simple gift, but one I have always cherished, even more so now that she is gone. I'm a fairly simple person who is easily pleased with small gifts and attentions, so having Heather knit me a scarf is more memorable than some of the other gifts she spent more money on. Being a knitter myself, I know the time and attention that goes into making even the smallest items, and I always loved it when Heather would give me her scarves that she had knit.

Heather was an erratic knitter--not that she wasn't good at knitting, quite the opposite. No, it was when she knit that was erratic. She would get a wild hair and buy a bunch of yarn and knit like mad for a time. And then she would just stop. But whenever she did knit, she had such a way of making the most complicated patterns. I learned to knit a couple years after her, and when I realized how intricate it was to make things she thought of as "simple" blew me away. I wished she would have spent more time knitting more, but perhaps that is what makes the few items I have from her even more special.

(picture taken last year during Disneyland vacay for Heather's b-day. Heather on the left, me on the right)

I love you, my sweet sister Heather. Happy Birthday.

Anatomy of A Fair Isle Mitten

2009-12-07T17:36:00.009-07:00

I'm really in love with mittens right now, and I am going to be making a bunch over the next month. The first finished pair to show is my lovely Selbuvotter Annemor #11 (aka traditional Norwegian fair isle mittens!), which I finally finished! Remember this post last October about the Selbuvotter "gloves" I had started. If you noticed, I just said I finished a pair of "mittens" not "gloves." Well, that's because when I got to the part to start the fingers, I got scared and put the project away, and unfortunately it didn't resurface until a week ago. After careful deliberation, I decided it would be better if I just made them as mittens and be done with them. So that's what I did!

On the first mitten, I had already done the cuff
and had moved onto the back of hand pattern.
The tricky thing, and also the beautiful thing, about these mittens is that they are patterned on every inch and every side of knitting. Luckily I can knit with both hands, so it made fair isle stranding very easy (quick explanation: you carry 1 color in one hand and 1 color in the other and only knit with that specific hand when that color is needed--using both hands goes waaaay fast and helps prevent tangles).
Since the pattern was written for gloves, I had to decide how to turn them into mittens and still maintain a pretty pattern on the back of the hand. I looked at other patterns in the book that were mittens and counted the number of rows. I figured out I was able to do a second repeat of the flower/clover pattern and do the mitten decreases.
The thumb was a bit tricky just because they are smaller and it was harder to maneuver the two colors, but luckily my thumbs are short, so I didn't even complete the whole chart in the pattern. I started the second mitten right away because I knew I would loose momentum if I left it too long, and I was able to finish it in three days. I wore them to work this morning, which was an overcast, rainy, chilly 40 degrees, and they were perfect!

Back to knitting!

Optimism

2009-12-04T11:59:00.004-07:00

So I got my box of yarn from WEBS yesterday. It was stuffed full of yarny goodness, and I enjoyed stroking and sniffing (wool smells GOOD!) each skein as I pulled it from its wedged spot in the box. Classic Elite "Renaissance" yarn was on a super good blowout, so I bought enough yarn to make my mom, my sister, and myself a pair of Bella's Mittens, essential accessories for all true Twilight fans who also happen to knit...

Anyway, my whole point for ordering the yarn was to get 2 skeins of Malabrigo in Vaa that they finally got in stock so I could finish my Ene shawl. I was scared to pull the skeins out, afraid that they would be too green. However, they match better than I thought they would, so it will work. One skein is really really close, and the other, not as much, so I think when I double-strand them it will mask the mismatch. I hope. And if the color difference is noticeable, then it will just make this shawl even that much more charming. Right?

Optimisim can be such a drag sometimes.

Back to knitting!

Black Sheep Friday

2009-11-26T21:43:00.005-07:00

Since I'm so happy that I don't have to work on Black Friday this year, I decided to offer a special in my shop: ALL PATTERNS REDUCED TO $2.50 FOR BLACK (SHEEP) FRIDAY WEEKEND ONLY!
Starting RIGHT NOW, all the patterns in my shop will be on sale for $2.50 until Sunday, November 29th. If you're like me and not stepping a foot in a store tomorrow, only doing online shopping, stop by The Sheep Shop to check out this great deal and more! Happy Thanksgiving!

Back to knitting!

Giving

2009-11-24T14:55:00.005-07:00

A friend of mine moved away a couple of weeks ago. I decided a blanket would be a good going away gift, especially since she moved to Colorado where blankets come in handy! I only had two weeks to whip up something, so it was the trusty old standby of granny squares. I can make them in my sleep (and in the dark!). After I made all the squares, I decided to crochet them together to make it go faster, and also because it's just more convenient. The main thing I love about crocheting blocks together instead of sewing them, though, is that the back has very straight-edged tidy seams. Look:
To make the grannies more modern, I made them big, did two different patterns of grannies, and also added one odd square that didn't perfectly match any of the others.
The other reason I had an odd square in the blanket was because, well, I used only all stash yarn, and I ran out of purple, so I decided to make due. Shh, don't tell anyone...

Sometimes imperfections add the perfect touch to a project!

Back to knitting!

Oh No, Oh NO!

2009-11-17T14:32:00.002-07:00

Sadness. I have run out of my beautiful Malabrigo Lace Yarn in Vaa! And I'm only a little over halfway done.

Double sadness. Neither yarn shop in my area have any more Malabrigo in this color. And I can find only one store online that has one skein but I need two (might be able to make it with 1, but I'd rather be safe than sorry).

Now what?

If anyone has any of this yarn (Color 51 Vaa, deep bluish green, more blue than green) in their stash, please leave me a comment and let me know!

Back to knitting (something else. even more sadnesss!).

A Do-Over

2009-11-10T21:44:00.002-07:00

This:
is eventually supposed to be this:
Granted, it's already been that once, but it needs to be a bigger that. I love the two yarns I'm using. One is Noro Silk Garden (45% wool, 45% mohair, 5% silk), which was a gift from a secret pal exchange, and it's my first encounter with this yarn. It's a bit crunchy right now, but after having been knit (several times, I might add) and I know after being washed, it will soften up beautifully. The Noro yarn is different shades of pink, a bit of purple and a touch of red, with a hint of gray and a stripe of navy blue. This yarn will be the bottom/outer diamond edge.

The stripe of blue is what inspired the second yarn to compliment it--Malabrigo Lace yarn (100% baby merino) in a color called "Vaa" but is a deep green-blue that looks like navy blue, but has that hint of green as a surprise. Not only does it win the award for most interesting color name, but Malabrigo is the softest yarn I have ever used. No joke! I've used the worsted weight version one time to make a scarf and it has to be the softest thing I have ever made. If I could afford it all the time (it's rather spendy...let's just say this one skein of lace yarn is the most I've ever paid for a single skein...but totally worth every penny!), I would make everything with this yarn. This particular skein will make up the center/body of the shawl.

Luckily I already know the yarns look beautiful together in this pattern, so I can't wait til I finish this shawl. For the second time.

Back to knitting!

PS> Don't forget my sale going on this month in The Sheep Shop!

Such is Life

2009-11-07T22:33:00.002-07:00

You know what is even worse than trying to finish a lace project with a bad migraine?

Finishing the lace project (without cutting the yarn after cast-off just in case) only to find out that it's too small and no amount of blocking will fix the fact that it's just. too. small.

So two week's worth of work came out in about thirty minutes. Not fun. At least I was smart enough to not cut the yarn when finished so I wouldn't have to deal with that. But I still hate having to take out a whole completed project, especially one I've already had to start over three times!

Back to knitting...

A Plug

2009-11-03T11:10:00.004-07:00

My friend Amy, who sells baby flower headbands, asked if I would post on my blog a plug for an event she will be participating in on November 8th in Phoenix called Hissyfits. This store will be hosting over 50 crafty vendors, all selling handmade items geared towards children. You can read her post here for more details about the event.
Support local crafters by going to events like these and support handmade by shopping on etsy! (Don't forget my sale going on this month!)

Back to knitting!

Announcing: Lower Prices!

2009-10-31T17:44:00.007-07:00

So a few days ago I announced the FIRST EVER Sheep Shop Sale, starting RIGHT NOW! Here's a LOOK at the prices that will run for the month of November:

All Patterns will now be $3 (save $2)!!!!
All Miss Priss Hats and Lil Miss Priss Hat Sets will now be $5, plus shipping (save $1)!!!!
The One-Of-A-Kind Original Hoodlet will now be $25
(save $10)!!!

Come to The Sheep Shop TODAY and shop at these special low prices!

Happy Halloween and back to knitting!

Announcing: A Sale!

2009-10-29T22:18:00.003-07:00

I want to announce the FIRST EVER SALE at The Sheep Shop. Starting November 1, I will have my first ever sale in The Sheep Shop that will run the whole month of November. This sale is taking place in preparation for a new pattern to be debuted in December! Besides, what better way to start off the official Christmas shopping season than with a sale?

Check back on Halloween to see the announcement for new sale prices on patterns and items in The Sheep Shop!

Back to knitting!

Crawling...

2009-10-20T21:54:00.003-07:00

This is one of two blankets I made for my niece, Violet, and the one I gave to my sister at her baby shower before said-niece was born. Unfortunately I never got a picture of it (even though we live in the same house), so I finally got around to taking a picture of it a few weeks ago.
It's made up of basic granny squares with two baby fingering weight yarns held double throughout. The border is a simple V-stitch border, crocheted using just one strand.

I mainly wanted to post this picture because, as of last night, little Vi Vi started crawling at eight months old. Yay Vi! Since it's just now getting down into the eighties as far as temperature, she hasn't had a chance to use either blanket I made for her.

Luckily babies don't outgrow blankets as fast as they do sweaters!

Back to knitting!

Texture

2009-10-19T20:16:00.003-07:00

So the key to a good baby blanket is the texture. Softness is obviously a good choice when it comes to making blankies for wee little ones, but another thing I like to think about when I choose a pattern is what kind of textures are involved. Take this most recent one I made for my new cousin on the way:
I specifically chose this pattern because it involved both seed stitch and garter stitch, which are both bumpier in texture, but contrasting enough to be interesting to knit. The other thing I did for this blanket was use chunky yarn, worsted weight yarn double-stranded, and large needles to not only make it go faster, but also to make the textures more defined. I just loved rubbing my hands over the squares once this blanket was together to feel the differences of the stitches under my palm.
When this little boy gets older, he's going to love feeling this blankie with his little hands too!

Back to knitting!

PS> I forgot to mention that this little beauty came almost entirely from all stash yarn! I only had to buy 2 little skeins of the variegated color to make enough multi-colored squares and do the border (technically, I would have only needed one, but since it was the yarn I used double-stranded, well, you get the picture...). This makes the sixth blanket in a row that used mostly all stash yarn. Yay!

Instead Of...

2009-10-16T21:38:00.002-07:00

...knitting or crocheting, look at what I did to my hair today:
Back to crocheting (now)!

Window Displays

2009-10-10T12:42:00.003-07:00

Did you know that Disneyland is knit/crochet friendly? What I mean by this is that the past several times my family has been there, I have noticed several window displays which feature knitting baskets, crocheted items, yarn balls, and various Disney characters partaking in these yarn activities. Most of the time they are in windows that are not on the main path, but rather tucked away in less obvious corners.

When my family was in Disneyland this past August, I was able to snatch a few photos of the ones I could find. The first one was taken of a window display on Main Street back by the lockers. I think this one has been there for awhile because I've seen it before, so I'm curious to know how old are the items. The blanket is a hand-crocheted granny square blanket, probably made of fingering weight wool.
The second display I found was in a princess store right inside the castle area. Of course the mice from Cinderella would appropriately be found by knitting baskets, because knitting is just as fun as sewing.
These displays make me love Disneyland just that much more!

Back to knitting!

Miss Priss Bag Pattern For Sale!!!

2009-10-01T16:05:00.008-07:00

Introducing the newest pattern to Kounting Sheep Designs: the Miss Priss Bag Pattern! This pattern is the newest addition to the Miss Priss line--a cute granny-stitch bag with optional flower. This bag goes "green" by using 100% cotton yarn and pre-made canvas tote for lining--no sewing required too! Check out The Sheep Shop today to get your pattern!
Coming soon: handmade one-of-a-kind Miss Priss Bags for sale!

Back to knitting!

Fall?

2009-09-22T14:03:00.002-07:00

Today is officially the first day of Fall. In Arizona, the only way we know this is because the calendar tell us so. We've been experiencing a cooling trend, which means the high for today is only supposed to be 98 degrees, and the rest of September will round off in the low hundreds, high nineties. Oh well....maybe next month it will be sweater weather?

Speaking of sweaters, I'm about to finishing knitting my first one of the year! Just working on the second sleeve, then need to add three buttons and sew in ends and I'm done. I've really come to love working sweaters in one piece from the neck down; it makes finishing so much more enjoyable because there is none.

Back to knitting!

I heart Blankets

2009-09-12T11:02:00.005-07:00

Have I ever mentioned before that making blankets is probably my favorite thing? Yes? Oh yeah, only about a gazillion times! Well, since summer is almost over, I figured I would post about some more blankets that I made this summer that I haven't posted about yet...
At the beginning of summer, a friend of the family asked if I would finish a knit chevron blanket that her mother had started back in the 70s but never got around to finishing. She then brought me a bunch of extra yarn and asked me to make blankets with the remainder. So here are the three blankets that resulted.
Although the colors are very, let's just say, retro, I ended up loving the color scheme of the chevron blanket, because these colors are actually kinda popular right now; except they call it "natural" or "organic" colors.
I love the one blue square in the middle. It was my way of making this a more modern blanket. Plus, I needed one more square and blue was the only color left!
After these three blankets, I was able to finish a work-in-progress that I had had for awhile. It was another ripple bobble blanket, and this one went to my new baby cousin, Riley.

I knit this blanket, "Red Hot Sampler," right after I finished my third Cable Comfort Throw. I liked making blankets in strips so much that I decided to do the same for this one, only use different stitch patterns to make it a sampler. Plus, working with something the size of a scarf in Arizona summer heat is much better than working with something the size of a bedspread! This blanket went to my friend, who loves red.
And of course, my friend's sister had to have a blanket too, so I dug up this green variegated yarn that I had been saving, but had no idea what I was going to do with it. It has kind of an unusual combination of greens that's not quite camo, but doesn't really match other greens. But since I knew of someone who happened to be kinda tomboyish, and also loved green, I knew it would be a perfect fit. I added the creme, partly because I didn't have quite enough green for the whole afghan, and partly because it made it a little bit more feminine.

This last blanket is kind of a funny story. So I was at work (Michael's craft store), and I just happened to be working in the yarn section (imagine that!). This elderly lady came up to me and asked me to help her pick out an easy baby blanket pattern that she could use. I tried to find a book with some easy patterns, and when I asked her what she knew how to do, she said she didn't really know how to crochet. Before I could guide her to books to learn, she asked me if I knew how to crochet. I told her yes, and she very promptly asked, "Will you make this blanket for me, then?" It was so sweet, how could I resist? So of course I said yes, and she handed over the yarn. I finished this log cabin blanket in a couple of days, and the lady was so happy with the results.

So I counted, and I made a total of twelve blankets this summer. Wow! I'm really crazy but for some reason, I do most of my blanket-making in the hottest part of the year. Summer in Arizona. And I don't really know why this is...perhaps it's wishful thinking that if I make warm things, it will miraculously turn cold?

That wishful thinking has me working on a sweater now for the same reason.

Back to knitting!

Last One...

2009-09-09T22:55:00.005-07:00

...for awhile, at least.

I'm talking about my new favorite pattern, Cable Comfort Throw. I said I made one more with three colors, and here's how it turned out:
This one went to a friend of mine who, obviously, likes these colors. I call this one "Classic Comfort Throw," because it has a very classy look about it, just like the recipient.
I will admit, though, that by the third blanket I was ready to move on to a different pattern. I typically have a policy of not making the same pattern more than once, just because I have so many patterns that I want to try, I'll never get to all of them if I keep doing the same things over and over again. Now, obviously there are a few exceptions to this policy--like granny squares, log cabin (although I usually do different color repeats), and now, this throw pattern.

I can't decide which of the three was my favorite--one color, two colors or three colors. They all ended up fitting the recipients perfectly and the color combos worked out for the best in each afghan. I don't know, maybe I'll try one with five different colors?

Back to knitting!

Last One

2009-09-09T22:55:00.000-07:00