Project 365, Week 4

January 24



Leftover Chili


January 25



Northern Light


January 26



Minced Words


January 27



Sunset at New Market Square


January 28



Diner Tea


January 29



snow + knot hole = snot hole
(Sorry. The runny-nose-inspired title doesn't quite match the photo's subject, just my attitude at the time.)


January 30



Scarves in the Snow
(Since I began knitting, especially knitting lace, I've seen lace patterns in odd places. Such as my driveway.)


January 31



The Firkin Bull
(Mirror mirror on the wall... The Firkin and Bull is a local pub-like establishment.)

Project 365, Week 3

January 17



I inherited handmade, vintage linens from my mother and grandma. This is a detail from a table scarf.


January 18



Mead's Corner is a great local coffee house. Cinnamon adds a zip to their hot chocolate, like static electricity, before the chocolate takes over and does its job. The picture is one of the lampshades there.


January 19



Sunflowers and Self Portrait. I'm the one behind the camera. By the way, this is my quilt content for the week (month...year...in recent memory); the wall quilt was foundation paper pieced as well as hand-pieced and hand-quilted for a guild challenge. Almost ten years ago, when I had artsy-schmartsy quilty ambition.


January 20



The leaves in the birdbath finally thawed out.

January 21




January 22




January 23

Project 365, Week 2

January 11



Ubiquitous Bubble Shot


January 12



Hoarfrost on a spider's thread


January 13



Seams Like Tin


January 14



Wear Pattern*

*This is one of the Fuzzy Feet slippers I made at the end of 2007.


January 15



Counter Seating


January 16



It's Alive!

Vine Lace Cowl

I had decided to do no Christmas knitting. None. I didn't want the anxiety (Will so-and-so like this?) or the pressure to finish by a deadline during such a busy time of year.

And still I knit this cowl as a Christmas present; I just cast on for it during New Year's Eve.



I knew the reipient would like it because she requested it and okayed the yarn, and because she saw the lacey cowl I'd made for myself by re-engineering a lace scarf pattern.

Proof she likes it:



For her cowl, I chose the Vine Lace pattern in Barbara Walker's A Treasury of Knitting Patterns. It's a simple, easily-memorized, four-row repeat. I rewrote it for circular knitting, and here, I'm sharing it with you.



Yarn Used: 1 skein of Schachenmayr nomotta Regia Hand-dye Effect, color 06552 Blues. I used only 262 yards of it.

Needles: US 6 / 4.0 mm circulars, 24" long

Other Tools: Stitch Marker, darning needle

Cowl measurements after blocking: 31.5" circumference X 12.75" long

Gauge: 1 column of the lace pattern = 1.75"

Cast on 144 stitches.
Join the ends, making sure not to twist the stitches. Place marker between first and last stitches.

Knit one round
Purl one round.

Vine Lace pattern repeat:
Round 1: Knit
Round 2: *K1, yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo; repeat from * to end.
Round 3: Knit
Round 4: *Yo, k2, ssk, k2tog, k2, yo, k1; repeat from * to end.

Work all four rounds for a total of 20 repeats.

Knit one round
Purl one round.
Knit one round.

Bind off loosely. Weave in loose ends.

Blocking measurements I used: 16.5" wide X 13.5" long. The pattern scallops naturally, so kept them.



More details about the cowl I knit can be found on my Ravelry project page.

Enjoy!

Project 365, Week 1

Project 365 is a Flickr group dedicated to those who intend to photograph their lives every day in a year. I joined the group on January 2, and I joined in hopes that I will familiarize myself better with my digital point-and-shoot as well as my dSLR cameras.

Below are my first days' efforts.

January 2



Chenille Yarn


January 3



Hazelnut Crescents


January 4



Patio Dining


January 5




January 6



Some Assembly Required


January 7



Anatomy of A Thumb Gussett


January 8



Creepy Cute


January 9



Epiphany


January 10



Fragrance Water

Sprigs

The last blanket of 2009 was Sprigs.



And now it is a free, frankenblanket pattern for you for the new year. Frankenblanket, because I patched together two existing stitch patterns; I give credit where it's due at the end of the pattern. Also, thank you to my friend Initsox2 for the Mary Shelley allusion.

PDF link to Sprigs.



The blanket is for friends of my dad who helped us sort through his estate. I originally dubbed it Mud Lace Afghan for its color; I was trying to masculinize (a real word?) the lace and ruffles. But maybe it just looks like I'd dragged it through a puddle.

No matter what it looks like, this blanket is heavy, squishy, and warm. Lion Brand Wool-ease Thick 'n Quick, baby!