My Ravellenic knitting is going well, so I cast on something new! I received the July shipment from BMFA’s sock club — great color, interesting patterns! I chose the not-sock pattern, but since we are still under spoiler protection, I cannot share more than that. If you don’t mind the spoiler, click through to my project page to see the pretty yarn!
Category Cast-On Monday
Cast-On Monday: Ravellenic Games 2012
On Friday, millions of people worldwide watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games. Some small but significant subset of these people were mad knitters, competitors in the 2012 Ravellenic Games. From July 27th until August 12th, knitters will strive to embody Citius, Altius, Fortius in their knitting projects. I am a member of two different teams: Team Knitting Dead (from a Walking Dead fan forum on Ravelry) and Team MallRats (from the Minimall skein-swapping group on Ravelry).
In a nutshell, there are 32 different events to compete in, and most involve starting and finishing a project during the Olympics. I chose three projects from my queue for which I already had yarn, plus I set aside a bag of 40 minis (all glorious Socks That Rock Lightweight):
For Team MallRats, I’m competing in the Modular event. My goal is to complete 40 puffs during the Olympics. This works out to a little more than two a day. Not coincidentally, this will catch me up to where I’m “supposed” to be in terms of completely 366 puffs this year. Check out my pretty minis!
For Team Knitting Dead, I’m competing in the Cowl, Hat, and Shawl events. (It’s conceivable that I might finish all three, in which case I will consider adding one of my many (many, many) other queued-with-yarn-assigned projects.) For the Cowl event, I’m making Eli a bright orange Clewe cowl to match his sweater. With bulky weight Duchess, this project should be quickly completed. The to-be-matched sweater:
For the Hat event, I pulled out yarn I bought for a Greenery Beret while checking out a LYS. It’s very pretty and very soft:
Finally, for the Shawl event, I brought out my DK Capra and the pattern I bought to go with it: Parquet Tiles.
Cast On Monday: Dancing Fringe
See my pretty purple sock yarn? It’s Mad Tosh Sock in “Flashdance” — yum!
This week I cast on for a pair of Fringe Socks from California Revival Knits (Stephannie Tallent).
I’m using some ancient stash (Reynold’s Wash Day Wool in Cream) for the contrast color. I’m about to do the the fringe bit — very cool!
Cast-on Monday: Pacific Marigold
As a reward for finishing my design project on time, I bought beads to match my Stroll Tonal (in Pacific) and cast on Marigold by Susanna IC (published in the Sock Report).
Cast-On Monday: My Blithe Heaven
I spent most of the week working hard on design samples, but I did reward myself at milestones by working on another project — a little like a palette cleanser between courses of sleeves, bands, bodies, etc. I was EXTRA good and worked only on two projects that I owe to the shop — I cast on for a lacy sample in some off-label 100% camel yarn. I don’t know the whole story, but my understanding is that it was meant to be one yarn, but came in off from the standard. It’s simply lovely — just not what it was supposed to be, so it’s being sold as itself instead. It’s a three-ply, loosely spun — blocks like a dream!
I used “My Heaven” for this project, but I used #7 needles (better for making fingering-weight lace) and scaled down the number of repeats. I actually finished (yay!) during the car trip home, and the shawl is blocking as I type. It will feel great to turn in this project — I’ve been feeling guilty about not getting it done sooner.
The other project I owe the shop is a store sample of my very own pattern, soon to be released in the Fall 2012 booklets from CEY. I’m now done with 13 of the 15 pattern repeats, so the finish line is well within sight. I think the booklets will be out soonish, so this is another project that I’ll be glad to have done and turned in.
Cast-On Monday: Provence Design Project
I finished up one design project (yay!) and did all the math for the second one (yay, math is fun!). I cast on last night with a beautiful shade of Provence — loving this pattern in this yarn. I only wish Spring 2013 was closer so I could share it with you :).
Cast-On Monday: CEY Spring 2013 Design Project #1
Last week I heard from Classic Elite that they wanted both my proposed patterns for their Spring 2013 booklets! Hooray! I have the yarn from them, and this weekend I cast on for one of the two projects. I wish I could tell you more about them both!
Cast-On Monday: Socks That Rock (May 2012 Club Shipment)
The odd-numbered months bring YARN in the mail! Specifically, gorgeous hand-painted sock yarn from Blue Moon Fiber Arts, from their sock club line. Yay! I think we’re still in the spoiler period, so I will follow rules and say only that the colorway is beautiful (stash page here), and that I’m doing the not-sock pattern (project page here). If you click on links, that’s up to you — spoilers abound!
Cast-on Monday: Blue Boxes
Way back in March, I brought some lovely Dream in Color Smooshy with Cashmere — two skeins in this gorgeous blue:
I didn’t have any plans for it, but it was just too pretty (and too soft) to languish, alone, at the yarn shop.
Then, later on, I queued Bigger on the Inside (by Kate Atherly). I mean, Dr. Who, right? Who doesn’t want a TARDIS shawlette? I even made a note in my queue that I should knit it “in TARDIS blue, obviously.” This week I connected yarn and pattern — voila!
I know lace doesn’t look like much until it’s blocked — so don’t be too judgey about it’s somewhat lumpish appearance. I promise you it is verra pretty when I stretch it out and admire the pattern.
Cast-on Monday: Foxglove Cloche and Poodle for Hire
My Monday knitting group took a field trip to Another Yarn in Winchester, MA. They had some of the new Madelinetosh colors, and I found that Foxglove (in Tosh DK) just had to come home with me.
I’ve already turned it into this adorable hat — which still needs a ribbon and a button to be finished:
I also (finally) cast on for the poodle I owe to the winner of the Jasper raffle — I made a leg, then frogged it, because it was HUGE. I ended up un-plying the Pipsqueak I’m using into three individual plies, and using just one ply to made the leg again. It worked, I’m happy with the results: “just” three more legs, two sides of the body, the head, and the tail to go. 🙂
Pipsqueak:
Remily Knits 