I Don't Play with Dolls But. . .

When I attended the Nordic Knitting Conference in Seattle last October I attended a workshop taught by Marilyn Van Keppel on the Icelandic Shawl. She had us knit a doll sized shawl that is a miniature copy of a classic Icelandic Shawl. I loved every second of the conference. Even standing in line for dinner was fun because of all the beautiful knitwear I could see. Marilyn was a very informative teacher and she allowed us to inspect and pet a number of Icelandic and Faroese shawls she's knitted, including several from Bundanaurriklaedid and Three-cornered and Long Shawls, which she translated into English. Both books with the translations are available from Schoolhouse Press.

Details:
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Laceweight in "pretty in pink" (no. 3140) and a mystery laceweight wool bought at a weaver's garage sale in plum, 10 g. total for both yarns.
Needles: 5.0 mm. (US 8) for the provisional c/o, 3.5 mm. (US 4) for the shawl and the border, and 1.75 mm (US 2) to pickup the provisional c/o in order to knit the border.
Pattern: MvK's own pattern entitled "Icelandic Triangular Lace Shawl," distributed in the class.
Size: 20" across the top and 9" deep at the point after blocking. The border is 2.5" deep.
Notes: The pattern specified three colors for the border but I only used one. I find it hard to believe that one can make something so beautiful out of 10 g. of yarn. I'm looking forward to remaking this in a bigger size. Maybe by then I will have acquired some blocking wires.

Red Mitts--one done, one to frog

I completed the first red half-mitt and promptly cast on for the second using the wrong sized needle. Maybe this is why knitters suffer from second sock syndrome.














I'm pleased with how the first one turned out although having a gusset on only one side of the thumb will take some getting used to. It is a bit hard to see in the above photo but the gusset is located between the palm and the back of the hand on the left side of the mitten back.














Above is a palm view. Note no gusset on the palm which, surprisingly, doesn't adversely affect the fit. The color is washed out in this shot.














Cuff closeup, also washed out.
Other details are on my Ravelry project entry.

Eye Candy Friday in Periwinkle

Jacaranda blossoms fill our skies this time of year. I never get over the thrill of seeing these trees in bloom.

Waving Lace

Evelyn Clark's Waving Lace Socks from Interweave Knits, Spring 2004. The pattern has been reissued in Favorite Socks. The color is more accurate in the full sized picture but the heel photo shows the details nicely. This was fun to knit because the pattern could be memorized so I wasn't chained to the chart but it had enough detail to keep my interest.

I used cotton yarn but the lack of memory even with the partial wool content created fit problems. I solved these by going down to a size 00 needle (and trying not to impale myself or anyone else) for the ankle, the heel and the instep. When I reached the widest part of the foot I reverted to a size 0 needle and returned again to the 00 needles for the toes. I adjusted the decreases to match my wide toe box.














Details
Pattern: Waving Lace Socks by Evelyn Clark
Yarn:Schachenmayr nomotta Regia Cotton in color 54, a denim blue. I used 93.5 grams of a 100 gram ball and felt as though I were running on fumes at the end.
Size: To fit my size 9 foot.
Needles: Crystal Palace 2.0 mm (US 0) for the leg until the ankle and the foot between the instep and the toe. Susan Bates US size 00 for the ankle, heel, instep and toe.
Dates: 4/3/07 - 5/2/08
Modifications: A slipped stitch instep and the needle and toe revisions described above.

Shell Socks

I knit these socks for my mom whose feet are almost always cold.




Details
Yarn: Schaffhauser Sport- und Sockinwolle in white (no. 19) 72 g total; and Lang Jawol reinforcement in white used on the toes only.
Needles: Crystal Palace Bamboo dpns 2.0 mm. (US 0) except for a size 3.25 mm. (US 3) for the cast on.
Pattern: Child's First Socks in Shell Pattern from Knitting Vintage Socks.
Gauge: I didn't record it.
Size: To fit a woman's size 8.5
Begun: 1/1/07
Completed: 2/24/08
Notes: No Modifications. The yarn was soft, the socks are warm and the pattern was a fun knit.

Red Half-Mitts

These are the Half-mitts from Twined Knitting. I started them last weekend and am thoroughly enjoying the process. They are being made in Dale of Norway
Falk in a bright red. Because the yarn in "s twist" instead of "z twist" I am twisting the new yarn under (rather than over) the old yarn to keep the working yarns from over twisting and kinking back on themselves.
The cuff was worked with 2.5 mm needles and the hand is being working with 3.25 mm. needles. I had to tweak the pattern a bit. Details will be in the final post.