Summer Stash Organizing

Now that the summer has begun and I am back home, I am organizing and tidying up my stash. It was all shoved in two big baskets, but now at least most of it, if not all will be in plain sight in all its glory. Most of it is acrylic though because I was very graciously given it by some nice ladies who also knit. Everything has a purpose though, so check back a little later in the summer to see what I do with it!

I realize now that everything is visible how important it is to see everything at once; its so inspiring! It's also easy to arrange the yarn to match up interesting color combinations. 

Of course right now it's a mess. Lots of caking to do, I hate those floppy skeins that acrylic yarn is always wound in. 

Until next time, Happy knitting!

also thank you to everyone who has been reading so far! I don't know who you are, but I know you're there! Add me on Ravelry! 

A Little Hairwork

School is wrapping up a lot faster than it feels like, there's only four more weeks! ah! So far I'll be taking outdoor skills and ceramics in my next semester (which by the way, is my last semester!) Are you thinking what I'm thinking?? Custom buttons, maybe I'll learn how to make a yarn bowl or two, wee! 
Speaking of, have you heard of Earth Wool Fire? Its a ceramics company owned by Alan Smith, based in Portsmouth, England. They make some beautiful and unique yarn bowls as well as vases to hold your knitting needles or crochet hooks. Everything is hand made and sculpted to perfection. You can check out some progress pictures on their Instagram.  And here's their Etsy shop! You also have to see the octopus bowl that he has recently been working on.  One of these beauties is definitely on my wish list as well as an equally beautiful skein of yarn to sit in there when its not in use. 

In other news, I have been working on my senior project some more, it's a slow process but I'm excited about it. Here's a little sneak peak...

I've been crocheting with hair, and now I'm trying out knitting on dpns. I love the idea of creating with human hair. At this point, it's not a weird concept for me, it is simply a fiber just as wool or cotton is, the only difference is that it grows on people and not a sheep or a plant. Can you get anymore self sustainable than that? Once it has been turned into an object it also no longer feels like hair or makes you think of something that came from someones head, it takes on a whole new quality. 

 I picked up the edge stitches from what I had crocheted so I could knit. I love crocheting, but Im in love with knitting, so I guess I was just itching to bust out the needles on this one, but I will be going back and forth between the two.

Until next time...whats the weirdest thing you knit, crocheted or just used in any craft/art project?

Thanks for coming back and reading! 

Happy knitting

Asymmetrical Cardigan update

 I dont normally make nice completed swatches, by normally I mean never. I generally knit a little bit of stockinette so that I can measure the stitches. Im increasingly seeing how important and beneficial it is to swatch especially after reading this blog post by The Craft Sessions about how to make your sweaters fit exactly how you intend them to. This lovely little square is for my Asymmetrical Cardigan. I knit two swatches and decided to go down a needle size after knitting the first one so I would have a slightly tighter fabric, and it also gave me better stitch definition. I wish I had photographed the other one to compare! Oh well. The one thing I didn't do was block this little guy, but when I block the sweater in the end I think it'll all work out.

I have a wee bit of actual sweater done. These are the front panels that I'm working on together. I use those safety pin-like stitch markers to keep them together otherwise I totally forget which side I just knit a row on. I also use them to keep the extra yarn from casting on out of the way. 

Most of my knitting time is dedicated right now to another Where the Wild Things Are hat which is for a lucky little baby whose mother works with mine. Once it's done I shall post it. I love knitting for others, I also love knitting for myself but as long as I'm knitting I'm happy. 

After I bang out a good chunk of this sweater I am going to cast on the Smocked Cable Coat! Im also am 'a scratchin to cast on a nice lacy shawl for the summer... that's a post for another day!

Thanks for reading! Until next time, happy knitting!

Sweater Time

Hello again, I have been wanting to post for a few days now but I've been doing a bunch of little things but I now have something substantial going on...sweater things. I've knit two sweaters at this point, but neither were for me, one was a cabled fisherman's sweater for my boyfriend Pat, and the other was a Weasley sweater for my sister's inner nerd. ;) It was awesome. But now I am making one for myself! Weee! I started one awhile back but only got about 2 inches of ribbing done... you know how it is.
I actually have 2 sweaters picked out with yarn ready. I feel like whenever I watch a podcast someone is always working on a sweater or wearing one that they've finished and I always wonder..."why can't that be me?!". I cant wait till I have a whole mass of em. Socks too, but thats another story. 

© Vogue Knitting

So the first one is in Vogue Knitting fall 2010, it is the Smocked Cable Coat by Mari Tobita. The structure and shape of this coat is gorgeous and I think the collar would be great with my short hair. I will be using yarn from an old sweater that I had for awhile but needed a new life. So I took it apart, re-skeined it and it's ready to go.

© STC Craft/Melanie Falick Books

The other sweater is by Nora Gaughan. She is such a great designer and comes up with beautiful unexpected shapes for garments. The Asymmetrical Cardigan (from "Knitting Nature" is the one I had started but I am now going to frog and use a different yarn. I have Cherry Tree Hill peruvian wool in Violet that I think will make the texture on this thing pop! 
I think cardigans of all shapes and textures are essential. I'm big into layering (you never know when you're going to get cold) and I think they also just make me feel like I have complete outfit on. I will probably be switching between the two as I go and will update cha with photos.

 Casting on something new always feels like Christmas, my birthday and the first day of summer all rolled into one. Anyone else with me?! 

Something else I like to do is reuse. I love going to thrift stores and looking for old sweaters made with really great yarn that I can take apart and make new again. I have a little stash accruing of sweaters that are patiently waiting to be remade. Today I -surprisingly quickly- took apart a cotton/ wool/ angora blend and got nice fat cakes of yarn. Mmmm... This will eventually become baby hats! Im digging baby knits right now because they're quick accomplishments, and they're ridiculously cute.

At the risk of writing a novel, I leave with this link to a raw carrot cake recipe by Fully Raw Kristina that I will be making within the next few days! She makes some seriously yummy looking recipes for desserts, soups, salads, and everything in between.


Time to catch up on the podcasts! Thanks for reading :) 

Biting the Bullet

I am finally biting the bullet, and making a blog. A blog about knitting! And other things going on in my life that surround knitting. For example, I'm working on my senior project for college and it involves a lot of hair...or will once I aquire a lot of hair. 
I'm using this blog as a way to get out of my head and into the world, and share my fiber love and inspirations. I knit everyday and am a little crazy in love with it, I know theres a lot of you out there who are too, I hope to meet you, so my friends and family don't have to hear me yak about yarn and sheep all the time. 

I also think this would be a great place to document my journey in the fiber world, its all beginning here. I'll be graduating this coming December. I want to be surrounded by knitting and fiber forever (is that too much to ask?). And hey, maybe I'll develop better writing skills. I plan on sharing what I wish I could buy in the knitting world (broke college student over here),  designers I love, of course what I'm knitting, and then other non-knitting things like food (of the vegan variety), thrifting, senior project progressions (I guess I'm also an artist?), and other crafty things. :) 

I now leave you with my current FO because I am so excited about it. 

This is a Where the Wild Things Are set for a baby in my boyfriends family who is due in June. The shower is this weekend and I cannot wait to give it to the mommy to be! I followed a pattern by CricketsKnits and made some adjustments which are on my project page on Ravelry, and also booties instead of mittens. I used Juniper Moon Farm's baby alpaca yarn in grey which is amazing, and I now have to make a sweater out of it sometime in the future. The crown and bootie accents are knit with Berroco Lustra. 

And I guess I might as well show you my first handspun ever that I recently made since I'm being a proud mom about my fiba. 

This wee little ball is spun from unknown (im guessing alpaca?) fiber from the Long Island Livestock Co. which is right in my neighborhood. I was quite surprised with how stress-free this was. I hope future spinning is this lovely, because I am so ready to jump to my next spinning project!

Alright, alright, alright.

Until next time...

I would love feedback and comments to improve the whole blogging experience. :) 


 Thanks for reading!