Sternzopf again!

I test knitted yet another version of Sternzopf for someone and here is the finished piece. I'm not sure if I did the best job of blocking, but it definitely looks different fromthe two prior versions!

Löwenhängelotusblume

I bought some additional size 0 knitting needles so I was able to lay out my "shawl". It is only 27" in diameter at present and I couldn't fully pin it out, but here is what it is looking like at present.

 

I think I am learning a lot from making this shawl, but it is not turning out as well as I had hoped. I think next time I will put more mesh between motifs (and maybe stagger them rather than letting them be so even across the rows of the shawl.)

On the Rack!

I am dressing my recent doily by Niebling - the so-called Trollblume.


It's 32 by 22 inches.

It turns out that I pinned it out upside down. Here is the finished version unpinned:

Edging for Shawl

I'm definitely not happy with this edging - nor with the beads. I'm considering ripping the whole thing out and starting over. I'm doing far more repeats per section than I should be doing according to the pattern, ( I think I should be skipping every other stitch when attaching, but I'm not sure the edging would take that much stretching.) The beads are BORING too just in a basic row. I've done a good 8 hours of work on this much of the edging but if I can stretch it out twice as far (by starting over, then it would be worth ripping out), since I will take a lot less knitting (but then it might look too stretched out for the shawl.)

Here is a closer view, but unless you click on the image to enlarge it, you can't really see the beads in the photo. I hate the outer edge (that I redesigned) too - It looks sloppy - I may need to take a break from this project and reevaluate it later - I'm not sure I have a level perspective at the moment.

Progress on the Vampire Shawl

April 25 - About44-45" wide Middle of the ribbon

Progress on the Shawl

Here is how it stands at the end of the first chart. I like it

On the Needles

I've been working on an MMario design called Vampire W(h)ine. I'm really liking it thus far. It is currently about 18 to 18.5 inches in diameter and I am going to have to order more yarn before I can finish, but here is what it looks like at the moment.

And of course I have to put a picture of my puppy up n the blog. Yup that's her on my couch!

What's On the Needles Now

I've started two shawls. Here is MMario's Vampire W(h)ine:


I'm only on row 35, but it is coming along. Currently 240 mm (9.5 inches) in diameter. Since there are 225 rows without the edging, this will probably be a pretty large shawl (and I will run out of yarn before it is done!!) It will be more than 5 feet in diameter when done before the edging if size is consistent with what I have done thus far!! The yarn is KnitPicks gloss.

The other shawl is a Niebling variation called Frosted Ferns,

Interlude - Yard Birds (but no rock and roll) and knitting

I've been too tired and busy to write about Beijing recently, but have had a few spare moments in the yard and have noticed the change in birds. The red wings have their epaulettes back and look much less dreary now.

The wood ducks in the pond by the mail box have returned and taken up residency at the back of the pond. It looks like they are wearing plastic eyewear to me - as if they placed buttons over their eyes to protect their identity. Maybe they are superstars of the Anatidae world.

And the bluebirds are back.

I'm a bit too proud of this shot, because I'm not the best of bird photographers and they usually eschew my paparazzo-style of ambush photography. Come to look at it, do you detect a slight note of disdain in that not so complacent eye?

And of course here is the state of my current knitting project. I'm not too happy with the line caused by the two needle cast on that I had to use instead of a  yarn provisional cast on while I was on the plane.

I'm including a close up shot so that the beads can be detected. I'm hoping they'll add a glint of sparkle here and there on the finished project, but of course it is so hard to tell until the finishing. (If you click on the image you just might be able to see them better, but then again who knows!!!)

This is the Diva Romana shrug that I started in the plane to Japan and that I am transmuting into a shawl without sleeves because I have limited yarn. It currently measures 24 inches wide and 17 inches long and is made in Cherry Tree Hill Possum lace weight yarn.

Panama Shawl Update

I ran out of yarn on my other shawl, so I'm back working on the Panama shawl. (Maybe I can use the leftover yarn to finish the rose trellis shawl.

Experimentation

After having knitted so many other people's patterns, I decided I would play with making my own. Although it looks exactly like Myra Wood's free form lace, it isn't really. I actually drew up a plan and hoped that I would produce something organic and curvy.

The product however is less than pleasing to me. It looks very eratic and poorly planned.

Here is a larger version done with a flash. You can see the beads better and the "pattern".  The cabled movements of stitches to broaden the swing of the ssk / knit two together lines has not worked too well, and I will have to figure out another way to do this (Maybe try it on the purled row instead of the pattern row.)

I guess I still have a long way to go to become a Herbert Niebling:

Panama Shawl

I ripped out a few rows of my shawl yesterday so I could put some beads in my Panama shawl to brighten it up a bit.  The designer is German and I think the idea of Panama is something warm and colorful and of course I chose a mousy brown boring yarn. The beads I chose are an orangey color to make things seem a bit warmer.

You can hardly see them in the picture above, so here is a closer view. The beads are much brighter than they appear in the picture.

New Project

Okay, I know I'm losing my mind - I really needed to start a new knitting project, but Monika Eckert has this great Lace Shawl Knit-Along called the Panama Shawl going and I just could not resist! So every day we have to knit as much as we can and I am two days behind already.

This is what I have so far!

Our family finally got healthy enough (with everyone out of the hospital) to have the celebration we had planned for Solstice. What fun! It was Aimee's first time through this and she really liked opening presents! Look how tired she got!

Have you ever seen a bigger smile? Children just love the holidays!