Time Passeth

I have not forgotten about you precious readers, it is merely a matter of hours that must be spent dealing with minutiae. Such things as work, laundry, cleaning up after kittens and birds. Alas, there is so little time left for blogging, not to mention my real love of knitting. And yes, there's the love interest who says "So you're going to knit tonight?" My heart sinks when I hear those words. Recently I heard a fellow knitter relate that her husband says those very words to her. After comparing notes, we both agreed that we never ever let those words change our minds. Once we have decided to knit, well, that's it. We knit. But I will say that my love's patience with my love of knitting is always appreciated and never goes unnoticed.




The lace shawl continues and there are no new photos to reveal the advancement of that fine upcoming addition to the spring wardrobe. Please send me your sympathies as I must actually spend time away from my knitting and go to work where I earn a paycheck that keeps me in yarn--oh the terribleness of it all.

Let our progress not go unnoted

Our progress with the lace shawl is noted in these photographs. I'm delighted at how easy this lace pattern is--one must only keep track of which section you are in, and there are only two, most gratefully. The appearance here shows our progress after only three evenings of knitting. I particularly like patterns that allow me to have some gratification, if not immediately, at least soon thereafter.



And here is a close-up:




Also, I find that the opposite side has "bubbles" which are very convenient for checking your work. I think if you were looking at the front (right side) of the work, it may be a little harder to see any mistake that has been made. But the opposite side would reveal, I believe, any mistakes made. I have not been haunted by any such mistake, thankfully, but I did notice this and thought it good to mention. One other thing I've noticed is that the shawl is a bit narrow.


There are a few lace knitters who have joined me in knitting this shawl. I invite them to note any other unique observations made. I like this shawl so much that I believe I will make it over and over with different needles and different yarns, and probably will make it just a bit wider. The pattern was posted a few days ago--if you are looking for a free project a bit out of the ordinary, but certainly not difficult, then look at my archive.

An Invitation of Sorts

Good day knitters! I wanted to share my latest project with you and despite the numerous problems in obtaining this pattern from the Lion Brand site, it is indeed beautiful. Because I have noted complaints by others about the Lion Brand website, I am going to post the pattern here as Lion Brand does claim it is "free." But first, let us cast our gaze upon this lovely shawl:





Lace Wrap
Lion Brand® Cotton-Ease (new)
GAUGE:
16 sts + 20 rows = 4 in. [10 cm] over pattern. BE SURE TO CHECK YOUR GAUGE. When you match the gauge in a pattern, your project will be the size specified in the pattern and the materials specified in the pattern will be sufficient. If it takes you less stitches and rows to make a 4 in. [10 cm] square, try using a smaller size hook or needles; if more stitches and rows, try a larger size hook or needles.

WRAP
Cast on 89 sts.
Row 1 (wrong side): K2, purl to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 2: K3, *yo, k3, k3tog, yo, k1, yo, k3tog, k3, yo, k1; rep from * across to last 2 sts, k2.
Rows 3-10: Rep Rows 1 and 2 four times.
Row 11: K2, purl to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 12: K3, *yo, k3tog, k3, yo, k1, yo, k3, k3tog, yo, k1; rep from * across to last 2 sts, k2.
Rows 13-20: Rep Rows 11 and 12 four times.
Rep Rows 1-20 until piece measures 80 in. [203 cm] from beg, end with a Row 20. Bind off.
FINISHING
Weave in ends.


As you can see, the pattern is lace and one only needs pay close attention to what section they are in as the pattern creates undulating waves that give it that lovely look. I had tried previously knitting the pattern with Cotton-Ease, but gave up. It took me several months to find a yarn that would have the wonderful drape needed for this pattern. I started my lace wrap last evening using Berroco Touche' which is a fabulous blend of 50% Cotton and 50% Rayon and the color 7936 is a rather bright lavender. Let it be noted that I do not like to knit with cotton, but this yarn is an exception. The Berroco yarn is far superior and although it is a loose multi-strand yarn like Cotton-Ease, it knits like a dream. Here is what I have knitted so far:



I am also surprised how quick this has knitted up. So let this be a formal invitation, if you care, to KAL with me and please feel free to post your comments. Happy Knitting in 2008!